A Tender Moment Under the Stars: An Inspirational Historical Romance Book

by Grace Clemens

  Gary’s jaw slackened and his brows knit together.

  “You…you plan on marrying the girl he was supposed to marry?”

  “Yep! Tomorrow morning. You’ll come, of course, won’t you?” Abram asked.

  “Abram, did you actually meet the girl? Did you ensure that you like her? Do you really believe that committing to take his place is the right thing? Why would he go to the trouble of finding a wife and then pass her off?” Gary asked.

  Abram had been trying to push that thought aside. As much as he wanted to believe that he had simply talked reason into Stanley, he somehow doubted that to truly be the case.

  “Oh, you know how men like Stanley are. Changeable,” he said.

  This was what Abram chose to believe. If it turned out to be anything different, he would handle it in time. For now, all he wanted was to wake up the next day and meet and marry Mandy.

  Chapter 3

  “It’s all going to be fine,” Herb said as Mandy rode in the cart with him and Sophie beside her.

  Sophie grasped Mandy’s hand. She knew every bit of worry that Mandy felt, having had to stay up late and listen to Mandy cry the night before.

  “But I could leave and find work. I could take Sophie with me. You wouldn’t have to worry about us anymore,” Mandy said, trying to plead with Herb one last time.

  “Enough, Mandy. You have found a perfectly good husband. Many young women would be grateful for something like that. It’s best if you try to be as well,” he said.

  They reached the church and Mandy took a deep breath, trying to prepare for what lay ahead of her. As they climbed out and she took hesitant steps toward the door, Sophie continued to hold her hand. She gave it a comforting squeeze as they stepped into the church.

  At the end of the aisle, Mandy saw someone rather different from the man she had expected to see. She couldn’t see him clearly in the dim light of the church after coming in from outside, but she saw that this outline did not match the man she had met a few days earlier. She looked at Herb with a question in her eyes, but saw that his own lips were parted, his eyes searching, his confusion evident.

  “Herb? Who’s that?” Mandy asked.

  “That’s some fella I’ve seen in town before. I don’t know his name,” Herb replied, awkwardly.

  “And where’s Stanley?”

  “That’s a very good question,” Herb said.

  But before anything more could be said, Mandy spotted Stanley sitting in one of the pews as no more than a guest.

  Once her eyes had fully adjusted, she looked back to the altar and took in the sight of a man far younger and more handsome. He smiled at her with a look of excitement, even giddiness, on his face. He was clearly more prepared for this than she was.

  Unsure what was to be expected of her, Mandy stood still, frozen in place.

  “What in all of heaven is going on here?” Herb asked under his breath, evidently confused and angry. Mandy didn’t have an answer for him, but she was worried by his sudden change in demeanor. It was clear that he was far from pleased.

  She looked up at him and he was glaring at Stanley over where he sat. Stanley shrugged and nodded to the young man at the front.

  “So…I’m not marrying Stanley?” she asked.

  “I don’t rightly know what’s happening at the moment. It would be best if you don’t bother asking me until I’ve had a moment to figure this out myself,” Herb said.

  “Yes, of course. I understand,” she said.

  Herb stood for a moment, apparently analyzing the situation. Mandy stayed silent, just watching him, hoping for answers regarding her future, and what she was supposed to do at that moment.

  “I think you had best start walking, Mandy,” Herb said at last.

  She did as instructed, with Sophie at her side. Thinking that this must be the beginning of the ceremony, Mandy tried to walk calmly and elegantly, hoping that no one would notice that her sister could not quite do the same.

  But as Mandy reached the front of the church, the man leaned to the minister and whispered something. The minister nodded.

  “Dearly beloved,” he began. “I ask that you give our couple just a moment to meet with one another.”

  Mandy followed without question as the minister led her and the man to the study behind the sanctuary.

  “You should take about five minutes to introduce yourselves and I will come back,” he said, before departing.

  At last, Mandy was alone with the man. She took in his ruggedly handsome face, with a sharp jaw, brown hair that hung around his face in a casual fashion, and stunningly green-brown eyes.

  “Good morning,” he said, gently, holding out a hand to shake hers.

  Mandy took it and smiled.

  “Good morning. My name’s Mandy Jane,” she said.

  “Abram Wilkins. I hope you don’t mind. I know it’s a bit of a shock. You came here planning to marry Stanley Hawkins, didn’t you?” he asked.

  “I did. I had no idea that the situation had changed. I don’t think Herb knew either,” she said.

  “Herb? The fella from the orphanage? Oh, surely he knew. Stanley said he would work it all out,” Abram told her.

  Mandy wasn’t so sure. Based on the expression she had seen on Herb’s face, there was no possibility that he had been aware of this turn of events.

  “Well, that’s interesting. I could have sworn he didn’t know.”

  “Well, I hope you don’t mind too much. Stanley isn’t the kindest man out there and I really wanted to see if there was something I could do to help. I was also pretty excited when I learned that I might be able to find the right sort of wife through this and I…I just wanted to see if this might be a good option,” he said, cautiously.

  Mandy grinned at his gentle nature. This man really did seem to be different. He wasn’t anything like Stanley, but her expectations even after seeing him had not been this high. A part of her assumed he would just be another version of Stanley, repackaged in a more handsome form.

  “Oh, and don’t you worry, I’m going to speak with Herb about your sister also. Stanley mentioned this morning that you have a sister and wanted her to come live with the two of you. He said he wasn’t able to make that kind of a commitment, but I’m more than happy to. We will have pretty tight quarters, but I trust that we can make it work,” he said.

  “Y-you mean that?” Mandy asked, astonished by this turn of events.

  “Absolutely. I could never separate you from a sibling like that if you really want her to live with us. I saw the way you two looked at each other with care. Leaving her in an orphanage just doesn’t make sense. She’s family,” Abram told her.

  “Thank you so much. Nothing would make me happier than that,” Mandy said.

  “Certainly. I, myself, live far away from my siblings and the rest of my family. I miss them and I wish that I could be closer to them. If I’m able to provide you with that privilege, I will do so, happily,” he said.

  “Where does your family live?” she asked.

  “They all up and moved to Boston about ten years ago. My uncle needed help with his farm and I stayed. Then he passed away and his son sold it to a rancher. I still work there,” Abram said.

  He seemed like a nice enough man and Mandy was grateful that things had turned out this way. She really believed that he was going to be a good husband—or at least a better one than Stanley.

  It astonished her to think that, just two days ago, she had been sitting with her sister and the other children when Herb had called her into his office. He had told her that she would be getting married, that she would be leaving the orphanage. She’d then met an awful man with whom she would never want to spend her life.

  But she had accepted it nevertheless. She didn’t think she had any other choice.

  And now? Now, she was finding out that she would be marrying someone else entirely and he was actually a decent man. It was a long string of strange circumstances, but it had ended up with something t
hat actually held promise. She believed that there really could be something good to come from this now, something she hadn’t seen before.

  Abram took a deep breath, clearly a bit nervous, but in a charming way.

  “I hope you don’t mind how this all turned out. I know you expected something very different, but I’m praying that the two of us will make a good team, a good couple,” he said.

  “That’s what I’m praying for as well. I can’t pretend that I’m not surprised about showing up here today to find someone other than Stanley, but I also can’t pretend to be disappointed. He really isn’t the sort of man I had pictured marrying. I…well, I probably shouldn’t say anything more about that,” she said, not wanting to come across as a gossiper or complainer.

  The fact was, she had been dreading the marriage to Stanley so badly that she thought she might have to run away. But it still would have left her with the dilemma of worrying about Sophie. She couldn’t bear to leave Sophie behind and that was even one of the main reasons she was so upset about having to marry someone as awful as Stanley. He had no respect for her at all.

  But she was still confused by the fact that Stanley was even present at the wedding. Why had he come if he was not going to marry her? Did he really want to attend as a guest? It made no sense at all to her mind. She couldn’t imagine going to the wedding of someone she was supposed to marry but backed out of.

  And Herb had appeared upset. Although Abram seemed to believe that Herb had been made aware of the changes, she didn’t think that could be possible. He would not have been so irritated if it was the case.

  There was clearly something going on and she didn’t know what it could possibly be. Regardless of Herb’s understanding or Stanley’s plans, Mandy couldn’t help but feel happy and relieved that it had come to this instead. When she looked at her soon-to-be husband, she was full of joy.

  Was it possible that God had heard her prayers? Was he giving her the grace to escape a marriage which would have been absolutely dreadful for her? It certainly appeared as though he was opening the door to something new and wonderful in her life, that he was giving her an opportunity to be free of all the misfortunes she had believed to be rising up against her.

  “I hope we have a whole lot of wonderful opportunities ahead, Mandy. I know that it’s difficult at times, trying to understand the routes life takes us along, but I know that for my part anyway, the Lord has done a really good thing. He has opened the door for me to meet you and get to be here with you. I’m thankful for that. I hope you are too,” he said.

  “I was just thinking the very same thing. It’s so strange, wondering what his plans and purposes are when we believe that one thing will happen and then he takes us down a completely different path. But I really am glad that things took this particular change,” she said.

  “When I went and spoke with Stanley, I really didn’t expect it to go this way. I mean, there was a part of me that considered asking him if he was really ready to be married because I felt so awful for the woman he was going to marry, but I never did think that he would agree to let me marry you instead. Anyway, it’s just one of those things, I suppose,” he said with a shrug.

  Just then, the minister came back into the room and looked between the two of them.

  “Are you ready?” he asked.

  Mandy and Abram smiled at one another and nodded.

  “I believe we are,” he said.

  “Very well. In that case, let’s make our way into the sanctuary,” he said.

  They followed and the ceremony began quickly. The minister spoke of the importance of unity and he called upon Abram and Mandy both to make their own vows.

  “Abram Wilkins, do you commit to love, honor, and cherish Mandy Jane? Do you commit to being by her side for richer, for poorer, in sickness, and in health, for as long as you both shall live?”

  “I do,” Abram replied, looking at her with hope in his eyes.

  “And Mandy Jane, do you commit to love, honor, and respect Abram Wilkins? Do you commit to being by his side for richer, for poorer, in sickness, and in health, for as long as you both shall live?” he asked.

  “I do,” Mandy replied, still wondering how all of this had taken place in such a short period of time.

  “And the Lord has declared that what he has joined together, no man may separate. Because of this, we, the church, intend to support the two of you as you continue in marriage, in love, in hope, and prayer together,” the minister said.

  “Now, as you have declared your commitment to one another, I pronounce you to be husband and wife.”

  Want to read the rest of the story? Check out the book on Amazon!

  Also, please turn the page to find a special gift from me!

  Sign up for my mailing list to be notified of hot new releases and get my latest Full-Length Novel “To Win Her Pure Heart” (available only to my subscribers) for FREE!

  Click the link or enter it into your browser

  http://graceclemens.com/pure-heart/