“So you don’t hate me for forcing you into this marriage?”
“I didn’t hate you and I didn’t feel forced.”
“But I bought you in an auction and then took you to the preacher’s house.”
“And at the time, I wasn’t happy about it,” she consented with a wry grin. “I don’t mean to be difficult. I’m just not as…eager…to adapt to a new situation as Rachel is. You might have done better to bid on her.”
“No. You’re better looking.”
The comment was so unexpected that she almost dropped her cup. Rachel Larson was one of the prettiest girls she knew. It wasn’t that she was plain, but when she stood next to Rachel, there wasn’t much to compare. But if he said it, then he meant it. Of all the things she barely knew about her husband, one thing she knew was that he was straightforward and honest. So telling her he thought she was prettier than Rachel was the truth.
The heat rising in her cheeks, she smiled. “Thank you.”
He returned her smile. “The offer is still up if you want it.”
“Offer?”
“Reading a book to you. I promise to stay awake while I read it.”
Amused at his joke, she said, “Alright. I’ll take you up on that. I’ll bring in the box of books I got today and you can start reading whichever one you want.”
“It’s a deal.”
She stood up and collected his cup to take to the kitchen. After she rinsed it out, she got her box and returned to him. Despite her initial hesitation to have him read to her, she was thrilled he was willing to do it. It’d been a long time since she’d lost herself in the world the authors she admired created. And it was such a sweet thing he was doing for her.
As it turned out, he read to her for almost an hour while she sipped on the rest of her milk and escaped into the world of Les Misérables.
***
The next morning, Eva hadn’t had the heart to wake the children up after their long night up, so she let them sleep in. When she did finally get them up, she realized she was beginning her first day as a mother, a task that filled her with both excitement and apprehension.
She watched as Leroy and Hannah quietly ate their oatmeal. There was no denying the awkward silence as the children quietly ate. Her heart went out to them. They hadn’t been adequately prepared for her and now they would be spending the entire day with her.
Toward the end of the meal, she cleared her throat. When they looked in her direction, she smiled then asked, “Would you like anything else to eat or drink?”
Hannah stared at her, not willing to say anything.
Leroy, however, shook his head. “No, ma’am. We’re full.”
“A-alright,” Eva replied, hoping her uncertainty wasn’t showing. “Um…let’s wash you up and you can go play in the parlor.” She paused as she stood up. “You did bring some toys here, didn’t you?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the boy said.
“Good.”
At least they had something to play with. That was good. She stood up and grabbed a clean cloth which she dipped in a bowl of clean water and helped the children wash up. Afterwards, they went to the parlor and she cleaned up the kitchen.
Not knowing what else to do since she had cleaned the house yesterday, she went to the parlor. Leroy and Hannah had their heads bent together, whispering. She recalled doing the same thing with her sister when she was younger. Her mother used to laugh and say it was adorable that the two of them were so close. It was nice that Leroy and Hannah had each other during their adjustment to their new life, but even as she thought this, a part of her wondered if they’d ever feel as close to her as they did to each other.
Pushing aside the lonely feeling that crept up on her, she approached them and waited for them to notice her. “I was thinking that it’s a beautiful day. Maybe we should go for a walk or see if there’s a place where you can run around. Would you like to do that?”
Leroy glanced at Hannah then turned his attention back to her. “If you want to.”
Well, she supposed that was as close to a “yes” as she was going to get. She took a deep breath and smiled. “Alright then. Let’s get your shoes on and go out.”
“I can put my own shoes on,” Leroy told her.
“Oh.” She glanced at Hannah who stood with her brother, staying close by his side as she watched her. “Can your sister put hers on?”
“No. She’s still a baby that way.”
Eva noticed the way his sister scrunched her nose and forced aside the urge to laugh. “I’m sure Hannah will be able to do it soon, especially with a big brother to help her learn how to do it.”
At that, Leroy beamed. “I help her with lots of things.”
“I bet you do. You’re more like a young man than a boy.”
“I’ll get her shoes. Then we can help her together.”
Amused as he rushed to retrieve them from their bedroom, she looked at Hannah who chose to stare at her feet rather than meet her gaze. “You’re a shy one, aren’t you?” she softly asked. “I don’t blame you. I’m the same way. I don’t think I spoke to anyone but my family until I was ten.”
She turned her attention to Eva but didn’t say anything.
“It’s alright, Hannah. You don’t have to speak. There’s nothing wrong with watching what’s going on.”
Though Hannah didn’t reply, Eva thought she saw her slightly relax and that made her feel better. Hannah truly was a pretty girl. She didn’t resemble Boaz much. She guessed that the girl looked a lot like her mother. She wondered what Boaz’s first wife had been like. Undoubtedly, she was a sweet and nice person if Boaz married her.
“I got the shoes,” Leroy called out, bringing her attention back to him and Hannah.
Turning to him, she saw that he had already put his on. One of his buttons wasn’t in the right hole, something she found very endearing in a young child who wanted so much to be able to do things himself. “You did a fine job with your shoes,” she told him.
“Hannah’s too young for the buttons,” he replied and sat in front of his sister.
Taking that as her cue, she went over to them and knelt on the hard floor. “Would you like me to help you? It’s a lot of work to get the buttons through the small holes.”
He nodded and slipped the shoes onto her feet. “It is.”
The two worked on the shoes together, and she tried to help him in a way where he thought he did most of the work. When they were done, she stood up and thanked Leroy for his help.
“I’d like you to meet my friend Rachel,” she told the children. “She came with me from Nebraska. That’s another state. It’s a long way from here. Ever hear of it?”
Leroy shook his head and Hannah stared up at her, not blinking.
What was Eva thinking? They were only three and four. She’d have to learn how to talk to them at their level, and that was going to take her some time. The children she had been used to teaching were older. “I’m sorry. I don’t know the best way to…to,” she struggled to find the right word, “best explain things to you. Then I think I shouldn’t worry so much about explaining things that you aren’t old enough to understand.” Realizing she had probably only confused them further, she sighed. “Oh forget it. I just don’t know how to talk to young children.”
“I can help you talk,” Leroy offered.
At that, she felt some of her nervousness ebb. “I need the help.”
“What do you want to do?”
“I’d like to take you to meet my friend.”
“Then say, ‘We’ll see your friend.’”
“Alright. We’ll see my friend.”
He nodded. “That’s good.”
“Thank you.” She chuckled and gestured to Hannah. “Do you think she’ll let me hold her hand? I don’t want her to run into the street. People may be out riding their horses.”
He turned to his sister. “Hold her hand.”
Hannah glanced at him then stared at her. For a moment, Eva tho
ught she wouldn’t do it, but then she held out her hand. With a smile, she took Hannah’s hand in hers and led the children out of the house.
The walk to Rachel’s was as pleasant as it’d been the day before, but since she had two children to watch, she had to spend more time urging them along whenever they got the urge to stop and study something that caught their interest. Whether Hannah wanted to wait as a butterfly fluttered around a bench or Leroy wanted to stop and ask about every horse they passed, the trip took much longer than it had the day before. This was something Eva knew she’d have to get used to.
“Rachel is really nice,” she assured the children as she knocked on the door. “You’ll like her.”
Just as Leroy opened his mouth to speak, the door opened and Rachel greeted them with a wide smile. “Oh, Eva! You brought over your children. What are your names?” she asked them.
“I’m Leroy. This is Hannah,” Leroy told her. “I’m older.”
“Yes, I could tell that by how much taller you are.” When he straightened a little more to increase his height, she giggled and winked at Eva. “Eva, do you mind if I give them something to eat? Maybe a slice of pie I made this morning?”
“What kind of pie?” Leroy asked, his head cocked to the side in interest.
“Apple. I won’t say it’s as good as my mother’s, but it’s close.”
“Can we?” Leroy asked, turning his gaze to Eva.
“I don’t see why not,” Eva replied.
Leroy looked at Rachel. “That means we can.”
Rachel’s eyebrows rose, so Eva explained, “He’s helping me talk in a way that children can understand me better. When I taught, the lessons were there to read. It was easy to know what to say. Now that I’m a mother…” She shrugged.
“Things are different when you’re raising children as opposed to teaching them. I understand.” Rachel gestured for them to enter the house. “Why don’t we all get a slice of pie and then we can go for a walk?”
As they followed Rachel into the house, Eva noticed a violin on the table in the entryway. “I don’t recall seeing this lovely instrument yesterday.”
“Oh, it was upstairs. Herb loves to play it. Tonight he wants to go to the square dance at his boss’ barn. He’ll play it while couples dance.”
“He plays it as a fiddle, not as a violin?”
“I don’t recall there being much difference.”
“Well, actually there is.” They reached the kitchen and Eva helped her children sit while Rachel grabbed some plates. “A fiddle is more informal. Your uncle Tom liked to play one. I remember his daughter mentioning he plays it at every harvest barn dance.”
“Yes, that’s true. He does. And he does a good job of it, too.”
“I heard him one year, and I agree.” She went over to help Rachel cut the pie into slices. “A violin is what I think of when I hear music by some of the world’s greatest composers. Unfortunately, I rarely got the chance in Omaha.”
“I’ll ask Herb if he knows any songs that are more like the ones you enjoy. It’d be nice if he could play it while you and Boaz visit with the children.”
“You think Boaz will want to do that?”
“Sure. They’re friends and we’re friends. It’s perfect.”
“How do you do it, Rachel?”
“How do I do what? Make a pie as well as I do?”
“No. I mean, how do you see the good in every situation?” She lowered her voice. “The whole time we were on our way to this town, you never once got upset.”
“I did, Eva. I was as scared as you.”
“But you weren’t angry like I was. And besides, you accepted your new marriage without any hesitation. Even now, you look very much like a bride who’d been wanting Herb to marry her from her youth. Meanwhile, I can’t bring myself to,” she lowered her voice, “do my wifely duty.”
She shrugged and placed the pie slices on each plate. “I see no reason to resist something that’s bound to happen.” With a smile, she added, “It helps that Herb’s a good man. Isn’t Boaz good to you? Herb thinks the world of him, so I assumed he’d be a good husband.”
“Yes, he is, but…” She glanced at the children. Quickly, she picked up two plates and forks and gave them their treat. Then she went back to Rachel and slowly poured some water into two cups. “I don’t know. It just seems too soon.”
Rachel offered her an understanding smile. “You and Boaz are not Herb and me. What works for you two will be different than what works for us. When the time is right, you’ll know.”
“You’re right.” With a chuckle, she added, “I probably overthink everything.”
“Just enjoy the fact that you have a good husband and two adorable children.”
“I will.” She picked up the cups. “I promise.” Then she took them to the children.
Chapter Eight
Boaz wiped the sweat from his brow as he rode Greg’s stallion. Both he and the horse were dripping with water from the deep watering hole just south of Greg’s property. He had tried everything else to tame the animal, but nothing else worked. It was good now, though, and he thought Greg would be pleased with the results.
As he led the horse up to the house, he saw Greg slam the door and stomp down the porch steps, shoving his hat on his head. Eyebrows raised, he slid off the horse and approached Greg who was muttering something about difficult women.
Greg looked in his direction and rolled his eyes. “Don’t ask.” Nodding at the horse, he continued, “You’re both soaked. Where did you take him?”
“Down to the watering hole.”
“What’d you do, fall in by accident?”
“It wasn’t an accident. I took him in and got up in the saddle. A horse has a harder time bucking you off if he’s in water.”
“Really?”
“I don’t do it unless it’s necessary, and it’s rarely necessary.”
“Well, I could have done it to start with and saved us all the trouble, not to mention the money,” Greg joked, a twinkle in his eye.
“Now, what good would that have done my money jar?” he replied, a slight smile curling his lips upward.
“Point taken. Let’s see how well you did.” Greg took the horse and hopped up in the saddle.
Boaz watched as he rode the horse to and from the barn. The stallion followed his directions with less resistance than before.
When Greg reached him, he shook his head. “I have to admit that you work miracles.”
“Thanks.”
Greg got down from the horse and handed him the reins. “Take him to the barn and I’ll get your pay.”
Boaz did as instructed, and by the time he shut the stall door, Greg returned.
“Here you go.” Handing him the coins, he leaned toward the horse and patted its neck.
“He’s a gorgeous animal.”
“Maybe he’ll have the temperament to match his beauty.”
Boaz thought so. “There’s hope for him. Well, I better get home.”
“I heard you got your children back.”
“Yes. Just brought them home last night.”
“And that wife of yours? How are things there?”
“Good. I think it’s going to be a good arrangement.”
And Boaz was finally looking forward to going home. It’d certainly be nice to have a warm meal waiting for him and share a good conversation with Eva and their children. It was surely much better than staring at a bowl of beans in a house that echoed with the reminder of everything he’d once had but lost. Now, he felt like he had gained most of it back, and he wasn’t about to do anything to lose it all over again.
Greg followed him to his horse and called out, “It’s about time things went better for you,” as he mounted the steed.
Boaz tipped his hat. “Thanks.” He almost said that he hoped Patty wouldn’t be as bad as Greg feared she’d be but held his tongue. Given the circumstances, Greg probably didn’t want to hear it.
Smiling, Boaz tr
otted off the property. The ride to town didn’t seem to take so long today. For the first time, in a long time, he was able to enjoy the green hills in the distance and the gentle swaying of the grass as it blew in the breeze. It’d been a good day. One of the best he’d had in years. He could only hope more would be waiting in his future.
When he got to town, he put his horse in the livery stable and walked home. He called out a greeting to a few people as he passed them by, surprised they still acknowledged him after the years he’d spent drunk, but he reasoned they had felt sorry for him and were happy for him since he’d straightened his life out. That also made him feel good.
He opened the front door of his home, not sure what to expect. Yesterday, Eva had been in the kitchen rearranging things so they were where she wanted them to be. Today, she was there as well, but this time Hannah sat at the table with her cornhusk doll in her arms, looking as if she’d recently gotten up from a nap and was having trouble waking up.
Leroy sat in a chair at the worktable while Eva cut some vegetables and, if Boaz was right, he was telling Eva how to make a salad. Boaz knew Eva didn’t need the boy’s help with that, but he thought it was nice that she let the boy think he was helping her.
Boaz’s gaze went back to Hannah. Sometimes when he looked at her, it was like looking at his first wife all over again, but these days, it didn’t hurt. It used to hurt. It used to hurt so badly that he couldn’t stand to look at her because all it did was remind him of everything he lost.
But today when he looked at her, he felt an odd sense of peace and gratefulness. His first wife had been a very important part of his past, and his past wouldn’t have been as good had it not been for her. And Leroy and Hannah were the gifts she had given him. He quickly wiped his tears away, surprised that being thankful for his first wife and now his children should make him want to cry.
“Are you alright?” Eva called out.
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