by Ali Olson
To make directions easier, she’d telegraphed Josie Sarah’s name so they could ask for her once they got to town, and she had agreed to direct them to Maria’s new place.
Maria ran to the door, excited to see the familiar faces. Mr. Swenson, Josie, and Josie’s little girl all looked back at her from the cart, beaming at her. Then, another face showed itself from the edge of the cart, and her whole world froze.
Jimmy was leaning over the side of the cart, twisting to get a glimpse of her. Their eyes locked. He broke out into a relieved smile, but her face still showed shock and confusion. Her brain seemed unable to work properly as she stared at the dead man who was very much alive. Mr. Swenson pulled the cart up to the door; Maria and Jimmy were only a few feet away from each other.
Jimmy scrambled out of the cart, lowering himself as quickly as he could to the ground. He leaned on his crutch and hobbled over to Maria, who stood unmoving, except to follow his movements with her eyes. Before she could process what was happening, he was standing in front of her only inches away. He sighed her name.
“Jimmy?” She looked at him, still not quite sure that she was seeing reality.
He enveloped her, his crutch falling to the floor. “Maria, I’m so sorry. I promised I would never disappear. I came back to you as fast as I could. Maria, my love, please say you love me.”
With his arms around her and his voice in her ear, it all became so clear. Jimmy was alive. Jimmy was hers again. She gasped and wrapped her arms around him as tears streamed down her cheeks. His lips found her face and he began kissing every inch they could reach. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, she began to laugh.
Epilogue
Jimmy leaned back in the rocking chair, cupping the tiny child to his chest. As slowly as he could to avoid waking the baby, he shifted his leg on the stool in front of him. Although his injuries had healed long ago, his leg ached from time to time, especially when the weather was turning and the sky threatened rain. He could see the dark gray skies out the window and hoped Maria would make it home before the deluge started.
As if he had conjured her with his thoughts, Maria strode through the door, untying her bonnet and letting her dark hair fall in curls across her shoulders. Even after nearly three years of marriage, her presence took his breath away.
She walked to him, keeping her footfalls soft and quiet. “Is everyone asleep?” she asked, her voice no more than a breathy whisper.
He nodded. “This one—“ he nodded to the baby on his chest—”was a bit fussy after you left, but quieted down about an hour ago. Alice and Emma played for a long while, but I think the weather made them feel tuckered out, so they decided to take a nap.”
Maria stretched out in the chair beside him, and his free hand found one of hers, his fingers lacing through hers. She leaned back and smiled at him. “It’s so nice Alice is such a help with Emma. Have you noticed how many good days she has had lately? I think Alice plays no small part in that.”
Jimmy nodded. In many ways, Alice had been a godsend to them. Her sparkling nature brightened up the entire house. She reminded him of Maria at that age, though her blond hair was so strikingly different from her adopted mother’s raven locks. Josie would be proud of how grown up her baby girl was getting.
Maria reached into her reticule and pulled out a slip of paper, passing it over to him. “I stopped by the post on the way home. We received a message from Guadalupe. She and Henry are getting along just fine, it seems, and they are considering coming for a good long visit in six months or so, after the house is finished. It’ll be good the new place has so much extra space, because by then there will be a little one with them.”
Jimmy smiled. “No kidding? Guadalupe’s increasing?”
Maria nodded. Rain began to splash on the roof as the clouds opened above their tiny home. “I doubt Julie and Jessie will be coming for lessons this afternoon, so it seems we should have the entire afternoon to ourselves. What should we do?”
Jimmy raised an eyebrow. “Everyone’s asleep. I’m sure we have enough time to do whatever we like, and you are looking mighty pretty.”
Maria laughed. “You are terrible, you know that? The employees at the bank would be shocked at how often their perfect proper employer’s mind is consumed with lust.”
“That means yes, right? Lupe here could use a little brother, and I would like another man around this house. Also, did I mention how pretty you are?”
Maria rose from her chair and leaned towards him, her lips tantalizingly close to his ear. “I’ll put Lupe in her crib and meet you in our room,” she said in a whisper that sent tendrils of anticipation down his spine.
She gave him one soft, lingering kiss as she took the baby off his chest, careful not to wake her, then she was walking away. Jimmy looked around the cozy, rustic room. Moving into a larger home was necessary with their growing family, and they could afford it with his new salary, but this place would always hold a special spot in his heart. Here was where Maria had nursed him back to full health, where Josie had lived her last months.
There was still time before the new place was finished, though, and he walked into the bedroom he shared with his wife, ready to make a few more memories in what he would always remember as his—and his love’s—first true home.
Beautiful memories.
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Dreams of Gold
A Gold Rush Romance
Henry just got out of prison and dreams of leaving his life of crime–after he completes one last job, that is. His boss will do anything to get his hands on a cache of buried gold and helping him acquire it is Henry’s only way out.
When Henry is injured and a strange woman takes him in, though, he finds something that might be more important than his deadly employer or the riches hidden only a few miles away.
Dreams of Gold is a short story companion piece to Memories of Gold and is available for free, exclusively to subscribers of my newsletter–go to http://www.authoraliolson.com or click to learn more, and to join and get Dreams of Gold free!
About the Author
Ali Olson is a longtime resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, where she has been teaching English at the high school and college level for the last seven years. Ali has been an avid reader her entire life, devouring anything she can get her hands on. She loves reading, writing, and traveling with her husband and constant companion, Joe.
Ali loves to hear from readers. You can email her at [email protected]
To find out more about Ali's books please visit www.authoraliolson.com