Noreen started telling Gina about the area, and all that they have been going through since all of them found each other way back in the beginning.
“It has certainly been quite an adventure from the days of Luigi traveling the seas and bringing back the wonderful things for the chocolate shop when it first began,” she said. “And now the way the shops are growing, and all the things we have added along with way with the treats and all.”
Gina was quite interested in hearing about how everything came to be, including Ruth’s dress making shop. “I am quite good with a needle and thread, all of the clothes I have are made by me before my trip started.”
“We could also use you in the lunch shop as well,” Noreen added with a smile. “It has been quite a success, and the factory workers fill it daily on their breaks for some good food and friendly faces!”
“I think I am going to like it here!” beamed Gina.
The next morning as soon as the sun came up the men started arriving to help out in getting Eugene’s barn in place.
There was plenty of noise and activity with the 50 or so workers who came to be a part of this grand adventure.
The ladies were busy in the kitchen trying to keep up with the demand for their meat pies, and they had quite a pile of them ready when it was time for a break.
They watched the barn grow from a mere frame to a full building, and by night most of the work was nearly finished. The next day would be all about the inside work of adding the stalls and finishing the hayloft.
The evening was for celebrating their success of the day and they had a big bonfire going for everyone to sit around and enjoy in a social time for the town to get to know one another.
Most of the younger men were volunteers for the fire department, so it soon became a casual meeting for the department and their chief.
“I would like to thank each one of you for volunteering to help on this massive project,” Eugene said, delivering the speech he’d been preparing since the project had started.
“I am proud to have such energetic men on my department because it means we are also one of the safest towns in this part of the country.”
A round of hooting and applause went up for everyone and they enjoyed a few who had brought guitars and harmonicas to play some music for the get-together.
Doris, Noreen and Ellen were watching from the cabin while Ruth and Gina got ready for the next round of biscuits and sausage for the hungry group.
Gina brought most of the platters to the big table that had been set up for this celebration, and she served gravy as the men filed by to get their food.
She did her best to keep them all straight, but soon it became too much for her. “How am I ever going to keep all these names and faces straight?”
Noreen laughed. “There will only be a few you will remember, and maybe one in particular will stand out to you. Relax, this is as much your night as it is Eugene’s.”
Soon, the party ran down and everyone was going off to sleep, or back to their homes if they lived nearby, while the rest were camping in the barn for the final push tomorrow.
It was Sunday, and the day started late since they all attended church first thing in the day to listen to the word of God, and be grateful for all they had.
Church was filled with much singing and happiness and the sermon seemed to be a bit longer than usual, but it was because everyone was chomping at the bit to finish the barn for Chief Eugene.
While the men gathered to plan the rest of the details, the ladies hurried back to the cabin to begin their cooking details for the day.
“This went wonderfully,” Doris said, “and from all the compliments we received, I think we may have a very busy season!”
Ruth nodded and then chimed in with an idea she’d had.
“I think I would like to do some special treats for the end of the day that everyone can take home for a job well done, but I am at a loss as to what we should make. I would love to hear your suggestions.”
But there was little time to talk about anything. As the work on the stalls began, they started bringing out the food and spreading it on the table for the mid-day break that was coming soon.
“Gina, why don’t you start off the table by filling their plates with the meat pies and gravy?” Doris said.
She smiled, trying to hide her disappointment about not meeting anyone who stood out yet. As soon as she began ladling their food out, though, she was struck by a tall, shy looking man in a cowboy hat.
“I’m John,” he said softly. “I don’t believe I had the chance to meet you last night.”
Suddenly, Gina found herself unable to speak. He was good looking, with piercing blue eyes, but not that handsome.
Still, all she could do was blink, and finally she shook her head and returned his greeting.
“It’s very nice to meet you,” she said, nodding, her voice catching as she spoke. “I’m sorry to be so hesitant, but for some reason I feel as if I know you.”
He smiled. “Perhaps you do. Do you get a break to eat as well.”
Gina looked over at Doris, who was beaming at her, and Doris nodded over at the shade trees near the barn.
“Why don’t you two go over there and get to know each other a bit?"
At first they barely spoke at all, until finally John began to tell his story.
“I was born and raised here, so I have not been off the land or out of San Francisco,” he said. “It is amazing to me to meet someone from so far away.”
Gina smiled, and she found that all she could do was to express the single thought that was dominating her mind and heart at that moment.
“I still feel as if I know you,” she said. “I know how strange that sounds, but I do.”
He laughed, and suddenly the conversation began to flow between them. When it was time for John to go back to work, he knew he had to find a way to see Gina again.
“I have heard that you have joined up in making the chocolates,” he said, his shyness showing once again. “I would love to see what you’ve been making.”
Gina shook her head and giggled. “I am still learning!” she said. “But I would be happy for you to come and see the things I am learning to make, and to taste them as well.”
John nodded, and they set up a time for him to come to the shop. When she went back to work, Gina found herself blushing furiously, and Doris, Noreen and Ellen were all smiling at her.
For it seemed Gina had perhaps found love at last.
”You know, I have been asking God to send me a good man,” Gina said when she began working again. “I have met many here in the short time I have been in town, but none have had the effect on me that John has had!
“He is truly different, at least to me—it is like I knew him from somewhere before, but he says he has never been outside of this town!”
Ruth and Ellen giggled, and they began telling Gina stories from the days when they’d first met their husbands.
“When I came here as a mail order bride, I was amazed when I met Dominic,” Doris said. “Things were very lonely before I left Ohio and coming here was the best thing I ever did, even though it meant leaving my two beloved sisters behind.”
“Meeting Dominic was like seeing an old friend,” she continued. “But I had not done more than write to him a few times while getting to know him, and when I got here he was much more than I ever expected!”
Noreen then chimed in with her story. “It was like that when I came here also. Doris convinced me to come west once Ellen had shown she could handle our father and the bakery.
“I had written to Luigi, who was then a ship’s captain. So I made my way here to see Doris again, and start my new life as a mail order bride. I never expected the wonderful man who loved me, and Luigi shortly after stopped sailing and joined his brother in the shops they now have!”
“Then I came here after our father’s sudden death,” said Ellen. “It was a strange experience indeed. But I had two of my siste
rs here, and I was lonely with no family left so I decided to make the trip from Ohio and join them.
“They were both so happy, I was hoping for the same and God answered my prayers with Dominic’s brother Isidore.”
She smiled and shook her head as she thought about her initial experience in the shop. “I helped him in the bakery, and we also work with the chocolate shop to make treats to sell. Life for me is blessed, and it couldn’t be better.”
Gina was surprised and delighted to hear their stories. It helped her to know each of them better, and to become more comfortable with this network of mail order brides she’d become a part of.
Ruth was next to relate her experiences to the group. “I was a friend of Noreen’s when we were little girls in Ohio, and we stayed in contact after she left to come here. She wrote about her life here and her husband Eugene, the fire chief, and how they met.
“I was lonely and most of my friends had left to find husbands. One day Noreen asked if I would like to come out west to meet a dear friend of hers who was single, and a nice man in need of a wife.
Then she, too, smiled. “It didn’t take me long to make up my mind to go, and at the same time I got a letter from this wonderful man named Eugene who was looking for a wife, and would I be interested.
“I came here, we met, fell in love and have had an amazing marriage. I'm grateful to God for such a perfect life.”
Then Ruth decided to tell the part of her story that was different.
“I had a ready-made family, too. Eugene rescued a baby in one of his fire training exercises, thanks to the dog I had given him as a pet for company. We named him Gabriel, and Smokey became his guardian from the day he came into our lives.
“We were never blessed with children of our own like everyone else, but God had a special plan for us when he gave us Gabriel, and soon a little girl is going to join our family as well!”
The girls all gasped in surprise and said, “How wonderful for you, God is smiling on your family!”
They were all in shock, and Noreen felt it was up to her to explain how they felt.
“We often wondered how you were feeling when our children were around,” she said, “but we all thought it best for it not to be something we discussed. I am very happy for you!”
Ruth nodded. “Eugene is a wonderful man," she added. “I am not fond of his dangerous job, but, God protects him while he is saving others.”
Then it was time for the last meal before the barn was finally considered fully raised. The preacher led the blessing, saying prayers for the food and the new building.
“This has been an amazing weekend, I can’t believe we got it all accomplished!” Eugene said when it was all done.
Dominic nodded, and for a few minutes they discussed the fencing that would need to be put up for the animals. Then Luigi spoke.
“You know, we could not have done this without our wonderful wives. They kept us all fed while working on this project and managed to keep the shops open. It is as if we have found our paradise on earth with them and our children. And someday there will be grandchildren.
They congratulated Eugene when they learned of Ruth’s news, and Gina was more than happy to join the group with John when they sat around the fire at the end of the day.
Finally Luigi walked over and gave his sister a hug. “You seem to have found someone you like,” he whispered as he did. “I don’t think you will regret coming to America at all now!”
John began working closely with Eugene, joining him for his inspections and taking on more responsibilities and duties. He’d been eager to learn more about firefighting, and now the opportunity seemed upon him.
“So I heard you have a picnic planned,” Eugene said one day as they completed their duties.
“Yes,” John nodded, smiling shyly. “It is something I began planning after the barn raising.”
“Well, I should let you go home and get ready for it,” Eugene said. “I will handle the inspections on my own tomorrow so that you can prepare.”
John thanked him warmly, and then he headed to the bakery to talk to Ellen, who’d agreed to assist him in getting the food ready for the picnic.
“I know nothing about this, you know,” he said when she took him to the back of the shop.
She smiled. “But I do. Everything is ready for you. All you have to do is be on time when you pick her up!”
The next day, John went back to the stables and picked out one of the fine carriage horses he had there.
“Today I will brush you down until you’re all fine and shiny, and then we will pick up the woman I intend to marry,” he said to the horse.
Once the horse was prepared, John went back to his boarding house and began to prepare. He was chided a bit by the other cowboys who lived there for being a bit of a dandy, but John was nonetheless determined to look his finest.
“She is the finest and prettiest young lady I have ever met,” he said when he was finally ready. “I know it's strange to see me in a suit, but for the first time in my life I believe in love at first sight!”
Then he road to the chocolate shop to pick up Gina for the picnic, still wearing his ever-present cowboy hat.
He’d brought a small bouquet of flowers, and he graciously handed them to Gina before escorting her to the carriage.
“For the prettiest girl in town,” he said softly, presenting the bouquet of daisies and forget-me-nots.
Gina was speechless, but words were unnecessary. He helped her into the carriage, and slowly they rode out to the spot he’d picked out on the edge of town, where he knew there would be an especially wonderful view of the sunset.
During the ride, John told her about his family. He’d grown up on a cattle ranch with four brothers and a sister, and the girl was still at home, taking care of their aging parents.
His brothers, meanwhile, were all older than him, and they were involved in their own ranches. One had horses, another had sheep, and the other two ran a cattle ranch that was much like the one they’d grew up on.
Gina, meanwhile, had grown up in a small town with Luigi. She’d never seen a cow in Italy, and the only horses were the ones pulling the carriages and wagons of the gypsies and peddlers.
She’d been young when Luigi went to sea and he was gone much of her teen years, leaving her to help maintain the family vineyard and store. She learned how to sew and was very popular with the younger ladies in the town, using some of the fabrics her brother brought from his travels across the seas.
“Here we are!” said John as he stopped the carriage at a beautiful spot with a large tree for shade, carpeted in soft green grass that bordered a quietly flowing stream.
“It’s beautiful!” said Gina as he helped her from the carriage. She walked around while he let his horse enjoy the green grass.
He spread the blanket under the tree in the shade and started unpacking the feast fit for a king!
Gina took off her shoes and began enjoying the grass between her toes before she came and sat with him. “This is the most wonderful place!” she said. “How did you find it?”
“Well, ma’am,” John said, “it is my special quiet place, I hope to build my home here some day, right over there by that stream.”
“That would be wonderful—just like in a fairy tale!” Gina exclaimed.
“Indeed it would” John said, and the conversation began to twist and turn, just like the stream they were sitting next to.
They talked of the future and each other, stopping only when they noticed the sun was going down.
“I think it is time we headed back to town,” John said reluctantly. “No one knows of this place and I don’t want them looking for us!”
“I won’t tell them,” Gina replied, giving him a sly grin. “From now on, this will be our special place.”
They packed up the basket in silence, and on the ride home they watched the sunset, which made words unnecessary.
Finally, when they were almost home, John br
oke the silence
“I have given it some thought, and I believe I would like to call you my wife,” he said, hoping he wouldn’t be rejected because his proposal was so sudden.
Gina let out a surprised gasp. “Dearest John, I do enjoy your company, and today couldn’t have been more perfect. But I think that is much too soon, after all this is our first time together, and we are still getting to know one another.”
John blushed, and Gina sat enjoying the view with a million thoughts going through her mind.
“Would it be all right if I called you my girlfriend?” he asked finally.
“Yes!” Gina replied, smiling, her eyes shining. “I would like that a great deal.”
They pulled up in front of Luigi’s house, and John gracefully helped her down from the carriage. When they got to the door, he took her hand and kissed it, and then he kissed Gina on the cheek.
“It’s hard for me to explain how much this means to me,” he said softly. “I’m afraid I’m not very good with words.”
Gina squeezed his hand softly. “Sometimes words aren’t important,” she said wisely. “Sometimes time is the only thing necessary for love to begin to grow.”
The next day brought a flurry of activity in both the chocolate shop and the dress shop. A small horde of ladies arrived from the Midwest, and apparently they needed both wedding dresses and treats for the wedding.
They invaded both shops in short order, starting with the chocolate shop. As soon as they entered, they all began chattering at once to Doris, who couldn’t make heads or tails of anything they said!
When she heard the fuss and commotion, Noreen came out from the back of the shop.
“Excuse me ladies, is there a problem here?” she said, loud enough to temporarily silence them all. “My poor sister only has two ears, so if we could speak one at a time that would help both of us.”
The ladies left in a huff, obviously not used to being told what to do, and they quickly realized they would be headed for the dress shop.
“I wish I had a way to warn Ruth!” Doris said.
Christmas Miracles: Mega Mail Order Bride 20-Book Box Set: Multi-Author Box Set Page 84