West of Heaven
Page 23
“I hope we have a little girl who’s as strong-minded as her mother,” he said.
“And three boys who grow up to be just like their father.”
Gratitude for her husband, this child, the children that were yet to come, for life itself, flooded through her. With their hearts beating in perfect time, Jayne and her husband took joy in the hope of a new day.
Epilogue
Midas Community Church
Seven years later, 1892
B eing a pastor brought John Leaf many pleasures, but without a doubt, he liked christening babies best of all. Standing tall in the pulpit, he made his voice boom in the crowded church. “Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here today for a very special occasion. Ethan and Jayne Trent stand before you for the dedication of their fourth child, John Robert.”
The red-faced bundle of joy let out a squall that inspired ripples of laughter from the congregation. Glancing at the child, the Reverend smiled, too. A crying baby always got the same reaction from its parents. Just as he expected, Jayne jiggled the baby serenely while Ethan stood at her side looking as helpless as a first-time father.
John had to hide a grin. Ethan was far from inexperienced when it came to children. The evidence was squirming in the front row of the church.
The oldest, Louisa, was seven years old, and the boys were already calling her Lulu and making cow eyes behind her back. She had her mother’s golden hair, and though Ethan wasn’t her blood father, she was the daughter of his heart.
Next to Lulu stood the two boys. Ethan Jr., called E.J. for short, was five years old. He had his father’s eyes and the promise of his broad shoulders. He also had an impish streak that he had no doubt inherited from the Trent side of the family.
Stephen, barely three years old, had more of his mother in him. With his new little brother shrieking at the top of his lungs, Stephen did the only sensible thing a boy could do. He covered his ears and groaned.
“Cut that out!” squealed Lulu.
As E.J. jammed his hands in his pockets, Ethan Sr. gave him a look that promised a talking-to after church. Lulu glared at her brothers as if they were lower than skunks, and Jayne Trent stood in front of the congregation with a screaming baby and a smile that lit up the sky.
The Reverend cleared his throat. “Ladies and—”
“Eeeeek!” shrieked Lulu.
John hid a smile as the girl flung a bullfrog out of her pocket. It landed in the second row, right on top of Mrs. Handley’s head. The poor woman screamed and knocked a small orchard of wax fruit off her new hat. The baby wailed even louder, and Hildy Reynolds took it upon herself to pound out “Onward Christian Soldiers” on the piano. Mercifully, the frog found the center aisle and hopped out the door.
It might have been an awkward moment for another preacher, but John Leaf liked to stir things up now and then. He glanced at Ethan just as the man bent to whisper in his wife’s ear. After she nodded, he scowled down his nose at all three kids and curled his index finger, motioning for them to come to the front of the church.
The two boys took their places with the mournful expressions of children who knew they were both loved and in trouble, while Lulu stood primly next to her mother. Ethan gripped each boy by a shoulder and gave his daughter a look that said she had a few things to explain as well. Smiling, Ethan glanced at his wife and then nodded for John to continue.
As the congregation sang the last verse of the old hymn, the baby’s crying turned to a gurgle. Reverend Leaf cleared his throat and began again. “As I was saying, we are here today to celebrate the miracle of love.”
ISBN: 978 1 472 04102 9
WEST OF HEAVEN
© 2013 Victoria Bylin
First Published in Great Britain in 2013
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