The whole birthing process gave me time to think about myself as a mother. I had been so afraid of becoming a mother before I met Jacob. In my mind, motherhood seemed like a death sentence. I would have to give up all my dreams of adventure in order to take care of this tiny creature that depended on me. The entire concept was terrifying.
Now that I was face to face with mother hood, I found myself excited. Instead of it being a death sentence, I saw it as its own adventure. One that I would embark on with Jacob. He loved me and I wasn’t going to be alone.
As the fireworks went off around me, my head was turned skyward, my eyes taking in the brilliant light show. Between the fireworks, I heard a loud cry echo through the field. A soft heavy weight was placed into my arms and moments later I was handed my second child. The infants squirmed and wiggled in my arms, cooing in the most beautiful way.
I was panting and covered in sweat, looking up at Jacob with tears in my eyes. “Our babies,” I whispered.
His own eyes were wide and he reached out to touch the tuft of silvery blonde hair that stuck to the babies’ damp foreheads. “Those are my daughters,” he whispered. “I have daughters.” A grin spread across his face and he took his hat off, throwing it in the air in his excitement. “I have two beautiful baby daughters!” he called out.
From the other side of the curtain I could hear people hoot and holler, congratulating us. Another loud pop echoed through the field as the fireworks lit up the sky. Jacob looked down at me and grinned wildly.
“What should we name them?” he asked, brushing his finger over their pale, soft skin.
I smiled a little, gazing into their bright blue eyes. “Faith and Adore,” I whispered, touching their little palms.
Their tiny hands curled around my finger and in that moment I fell in love.
Chapter Nine
Before my mother passed away, she always told me to trust in God’s plan. I had always tried my best to follow that advice, though it wasn’t always easy, especially when you felt like your world was being ripped out from under you. As time went on, I’d started to question the idea that God had a plan for me at all. I tried to keep my faith, but as I started to lose more and more control, I found myself wondering why. Why would God let this happen?
I understand now. The road that led me to Jacob was rough and broken. The rivers were wide and hard to cross, but now that I was here, I wouldn’t have it any other way. My children and my husband were my entire world and I couldn’t have wanted more.
Shortly after the girls were born, Jacob became very interested in their education. He didn’t want them to be simply married off. He didn’t see his daughters as commodities and he certainly didn’t want them to marry the first man who proposed to them. He wanted them to be scientists and lawyers. He wanted the world for his baby girls and it made my heart swell with pride.
He used his influence and money to bring in teachers from Chicago and ended up building Boulder’s first real school. Up until the school opened, children were taught by their parents and received no formal education. Once the school opened up, people began flocking to our beautiful city.
Just as he promised, Jacob let me do as I pleased. My garden got bigger and bigger and soon enough it was one of the main food sources of the town. I had to hire several people to help me care for it, all women who’d come out to Boulder for the same reason I had.
When my garden became too large for me to manage on my own, I knew I would need something to busy myself with. Jacob was the one to suggest that I become a teacher at the school. He was always impressed with my knowledge of literature. I’d always been an avid reader and the idea of teaching my children and the children of my beloved town was something that warmed me to the depths of my soul. I took him up on his offer and soon became the first female school teacher in Boulder.
At first, people looked at us strangely. They asked Jacob how he could let his wife be a teacher. How was it affecting the children? We got many questions like this, but the best answer we could give them was to show how successful I was. The children loved my class and soon adults even came in to read the classics. I taught them to love words and love stories and in the process, I found my place in the world, something I never thought possible.
When one of the old churches was damaged in a tornado, we’d salvaged the bell and used it to ring in the beginning and end of school. The school bells rang and I looked up from the little wooden desk Jacob had made for me. Children ran down the hill toward home.
I packed up my worn copy of Dante’s Inferno and sighed, tucking it away as I started towards the door, rubbing my round belly. I was pregnant with our third child and Jacob was always harping on me to leave the school house behind until after the baby was born. He was just as worried about this pregnancy as he was the first. It was rather funny to me. Now that I’d had the twins, the idea of having one baby seemed like a breeze.
Like always, the girls and Jacob were waiting at the bottom of the hill. Adore and Faith were five years old now and growing every day. They’d only just begun attending classes, but that were sharp as tacks and picking everything up faster than their peers. I couldn’t help but be proud of my little geniuses.
The girls were munching on candy and Jacob stood between them, a hand on each shoulder. He smiled a little and caught my eye. Jacob had been a hard man once. He’d rarely smiled and saw emotions as a weakness. He’d always been about business and making the best deal. Now that his daughters were in the picture, he’d softened quite a bit and had a tendency to smile more often and shower his family with gifts.
“The girls thought it would be nice to come meet you and walk you home.”
I chuckled and offered each of them a kiss on the cheek before catching Jacob’s lips for a brief kiss. “Don’t play your little games. I know it was your idea. You haven’t let me walk home since we found out I was pregnant,” I teased.
He offered a crooked little grin and just shrugged. We tangled our fingers together, hanging onto one of the girls with each of our free hands and as we walked through the little town together I felt a swell of joy in my chest.
“I never thought my life would turn out like this,” I admitted, turning to look at my husband.
He raised a brow and turned to look straight ahead, clearing his throat. “Are you unhappy? Do you have regrets?”
I smiled and shook my head. “I’m glad things got a bit out of control,” I admitted. “This isn’t a fate I would have chosen for myself and if it had been up to me, I never would have known this happiness.”
Jacob smiled and picked Adore up with ease, still hanging onto me with his other hand. “I was just thinking the same thing.”
I smiled and looked towards the sky as my mother’s words echoed in my mind.
‘Always trust in God’s plan.’
The End
Return to the TOC for Bonus Content
Mail Order Bride: Drusilla
Chapter One
The trees along Peach Tree Street had begun to bloom, and slowly the city of Atlanta was starting to rebuild. Sherman’s march to sea had spared little, but the people of Atlanta were determined and there were glimpses of the city’s former splendor.
Down at the end of Peach Tree Street was the home of Doctor Timothy Montgomery; all of the town folk called him Doctor Tim. Many say his was the first face they saw when they were born, and others say he is the last face you see when you’re about to meet your maker. He was dedicated to his patients and there at the office on the side of their home is where Silla grew up watching her father and wanting to be a doctor like him. True she had the best teacher and many of the good doctor’s patients were comfortable with Silla taking care of them, but the state of Georgia their rules and one of them being women cannot be doctors. South had its decorum that said women were not doctors.
It was three years ago that an epidemic of pneumonia hit Atlanta. The hospital and clinics were filled and at Mrs. Montgomery’s insistence, the sic
k were moved into the home on Peach Tree Street and tended to by Silla. With Doctor Tim busy at the hospital, it wasn’t long before Mrs. Montgomery had started to show signs of the symptoms. She kept saying it was just a cold until one afternoon she passed out tending to her son. Jake had recovered but Louise Montgomery was not so lucky. Doctor Tim was at the hospital while his wife was slowly leaving this world. As Silla held her mother’s hand and promised she’d take care of Jake and her father, Louise Montgomery smiled and took her last breath.
Doctor Tim was inconsolable in the days that followed. His devotion to his Louise was his strength and now that rock that had grounded him for so many years was no longer there. It was Silla who had to care for the patients and as the epidemic passed it was clear that the good doctor was only a shell of what he was. He changed as the weeks turned into months, and the good doctor was home less and less. When he wasn’t at the hospital he was at the local bar, The Brass Ring. He wasn’t a drinking man but he had a problem with gambling and luck was not always in his favor. Many a time the good doctor would come home with empty pockets and Silla would have to get him in bed, only to hear him promise he’d never doing it again. Silla would hear him hours later in his room as he spoke to his Louise, taking comfort in talking to his memory of her. There were times Silla would stand at the doorway in tears knowing her father not only missed her mother, but blamed himself for not being there when she passed. As time dragged on Doctor Tim had found life without his wife was too lonely. Even though he still had his children, without Louise, Timothy just didn’t seem to want to go on. It was a dark stormy night on his way home from his rounds when his carriage turned over and he was thrown into the rain just in front of his home. Silla heard the crash and rushed into the street to her father’s side.. She cradled his head on her lap as he looked up at her.
“I’m sorry Louise, I tried to get to you but I was too late. Forgive me Louise.”
Silla looked down at him as tears filled her eyes.
“I forgive you, Timothy I always will forgive you,” Silla told him, knowing that this was what he needed to hear to finally be at peace.
He smiled at her and closed his eyes. Timothy Montgomery had gone to join his Louise, leaving Silla left to face what was to come. Three dark days followed as Silla had to care for her thirteen year brother and face the fact that she had no prospects for employment. Neighbors came to offer sympathy after the funeral and when they stopped, Silla found that they were truly alone.
Silla was not prepared for the reading of her father’s will. It was early afternoon and she sat in Calvin Lockwood’s office as he began to read the document. Silla listened in stunned silence as Calvin read her father’s last will. With both parents gone, she was now the legal guardian of her younger brother and tasked with the responsibility of providing for him. As Calvin read on, Silla’s ability to provide for Jake dwindled. Her father had accumulated many debts and in order to pay them off, their home and possessions would be auctioned off. Silla was left with Jake and not much else. Her grief soon turned to panic.
“I’m sorry Silla,” Calvin said sincerely. “I wish I could have saved the house for you and Jake but the collectors were insistent on getting their money.”
“Mr. Lockwood, how long do we have before we have to leave the house?” Silla asked.
“They are allowing you ninety days before they take over. If there is anything I can do, don’t hesitate to call on me or my wife. Your father and mother were dear friends and we will do all we can to help you.”
“Thank you Mr. Lockwood,” Silla said numbly.
She stood up and headed out of the office, slowly making her way back home. Not home for much longer, she thought as she stared at the structure before her. She had to find a place for her and Jake, and a means of employment to support them. With her father, gone so were his patients and she could not very well go to work as a doctor without formal education. She suddenly remembered there was a safe in the study. Her father always kept some money in there for emergencies and she prayed that he hadn’t gambled that away too. They needed something to live on until she could figure out her next move. She had ninety days. She stepped onto the porch and noticed the local paper at the foot of the door; she picked it up and continued into the house.
“Ellie, I’m home,” she called to her faithful housekeeper as she made a beeline for the study.
“Everything go well Miss Silla?” Ellie said as she appeared in the doorway.
“No, everything did not go well Ellie. We have ninety days to find a new place to live. This is not our home anymore,” Silla said, the words tasting bitter on her tongue.
“Miss Silla, what are you going to do? Why you and Master Jake will be -” she trailed off.
Silla looked at Ellie. “Let’s not worry about that yet Ellie and don’t say a word to Jake either.”
Yes, ma’am. I’ll get you some tea,” the housekeeper said, not knowing what else to do.
As Ellie left the room, Silla tried to hold back the tears. She got up and turned to the back wall where the oil painting of Mama hung. Behind it was the wall safe. Slowly Silla worked the tumblers and pulled he handle to open the safe. There stacked next to her mother’s jewels was the money. Slowly she took the stacks of money and placed them on the desk. She then took out her mother’s jewels; the thought of selling them would break her heart. She sat and counted the money and to her surprise, found five hundred dollars. That would be more than enough to find a place to live and hold them over until she could find a job. Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Ellie ushered Calvin Lockwood into the study.
“Mr. Lockwood, is there something else?” she asked hesitantly. She couldn’t take much more bad news today.
He looked at the jewelry and the money on the desk.
“I’m sorry. I had forgotten to mention that your mother’s jewels also must go.
But I’m not heartless, I’ll leave you two hundred dollars.”
“All of my mother’s jewels?” Silla said, feeling the color drain from her face.
“I’ll let you chose two pieces Silla, one for you and one for Jake. It’s the best I can do,” he said with genuine remorse. Silla looked at him, and then took her mother’s wedding band for herself and one of her favorite broches for Jake to have. She looked at the emerald necklace that was her mother’s favorite, and gently placed it in Calvin’s hands.
“She always loved this this necklace. It was a birthday gift from papa.”
She rose from the desk and left Calvin alone in the study. She needed time to herself to think, and she retreated upstairs to her bedroom sanctuary. Ninety days is all she had for a miracle to happen for her.
Later that afternoon when Silla came down for supper, Jake was already eating. He looked up at her as she entered the dining room.
“Mr. Lockwood told me we to move out Silla, why?” he asked.
“Well Jake, papa had owed a lot of money to people and they had to be paid, and all we had was the house to pay papa’s debts.”
“So where are we to live Silla?”
“I’m working on that Jake, don’t you worry,’’ she tried to assure him.
Silla dropped into the chair across from her bother and picked up the newspaper in hopes of locating a job. Instead, an advertisement in the classified section caught her eye.
Wanted: A wife to work beside me on my ranch located in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Reply to Boardman, Broken Spur Ranch Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Silla read the ad over and over again, turning the possibilities around in her mind. Her first thought was Wyoming was far enough away that no one would know of her family’s shame. She noted again that this Boardman wanted someone to help with the ranch. Maybe he would settle for two people to work on the ranch instead of just a wife. The more she thought about it the more ridiculous it sounded. Neither Jake nor she knew anything about ranching. And what about housework? She could watch Ellie for a few days and could pick it up before they had to leave. But th
en what would happen to Ellie? She couldn’t very well leave her unemployed as well. She looked at her brother.
“Don’t worry Jake I’ll find us a place,” she promised.
That evening when Jake had gone off to bed Silla went into her father’s study. It was here she took pen in hand and began to compose a letter to Mr. Boardman.
Dear Mr. Boardman,
I am answering your advertisement in our local paper for a wife. I do hope the position is not taken as of yet. Permit me to introduce myself; I am Drusilla Montgomery, the daughter of Dr. Timothy Montgomery of Atlanta, Georgia. My father was killed only a few weeks ago in a carriage accident leaving, me and my thirteen year old brother Jacob alone in this world. Our inheritance was taken by our father’s creditors leaving us with just the clothes on our backs. I would like to apply for the position and ask that I may bring my brother and housekeeper with me on this trip. We are very hard workers and are not afraid to do what is asked of us. I was taught the ways of medicine by my father and have assisted my father many times in his office.
Ellie has been with my family for years and an excellent housekeeper.
I am twenty-seven years old, never married, and very interested in your proposal. I have to leave our home in ninety days so I do hope you can reply with an answer before then. Enclosed is photograph of me taken last year. I hope you find it to your liking.
Sincerely, Drusilla Montgomery.
The following morning Silla entered the kitchen as Ellie was making cookies.
“Is there something I can do for you Miss Silla?” Ellie asked.
“I was wondering could you teach me how to bake Ellie?”
Ellie looked at Silla curiously. In all the years she’s been with the family she’s never known Silla to be interested in baking.
Biker Romance: Never Love an Exile (Exile Love Biker MC Series Book 3) Page 31