by Sasha Gold
“This barn’s even bigger than the old one,” one of the boys exclaimed.
“It’s got stalls for twenty horses. The old one only had stalls for ten. It’s going to take two days to paint. Did you bring bedrolls to camp out?”
Before anyone answered, another two more buckboards came down the road: the Becker and the Hoffer families. They brought tents, bedrolls, and scores of covered dishes for the hungry work crews. The horses were unhitched and wagons unloaded.
Soon the barn was surrounded by teams of painters and crews of boys setting up scaffolding. Nolan and Loretta sat with the parents of the boys in the shade of an oak tree. Lilac’s half-grown kittens wrestled in the dappled sunlight.
Luke and Esme, the last people to join the party, emerged from the house.
Nolan teased them about their late arrival. “Finally decided to join us did you?”
“It’s my day off,” Luke grumbled. “I have Roberto in charge of the painters, and Edgar too. With that sort of expertise around, a man should be able to sleep in with his bride if he feels like it.”
Edgar came jogging across the yard, paintbrush in hand. Back from Italy just three weeks, he’d scarcely stopped smiling since his return. He’d fallen in love in Rome, and sent a letter proposing to the woman. Leonora, Nora, for short was a widow and lonely like Edgar. She was due to arrive in ten days, and the couple would live in Simon’s home.
Edgar would be busy over the next few months. Luke and Esme had entrusted him with the plans for a new cabin for the boys, one that would be more spacious and comfortable.
“The boys are making excellent progress,” Edgar said. “They think that if they need a second day, it will only be for an hour or two. They were worried if they finish early they’d cancel the campout. I was elected as spokesperson, something about my powers of persuasion.” Edgar laughed a little self-consciously.
“Hell, I don’t care.” Nolan turned to look at Luke. “What do you think, boss?”
“Fine by me,” Luke said.
“The more the merrier,” Esme added.
Loretta laughed. “Why I declare, Mrs. Crosby. I believe you’re starting to get a soft spot for those boys.”
Esme smiled. “Those boys are perfect children. That’s why.” Everyone laughed. “Luke and I will be adding another little one come December.”
There was a collective gasp and several men shot to their feet and offered their chair to Esme. She laughed and waved them away, but the women insisted that she sit and rest. Esme could not imagine why Luke, then Edgar, and now her neighbors all acted as though she was a porcelain doll just because she was expecting. She’d never felt better. There hadn’t been a moment of morning sickness, and as she entered her second trimester she assumed she wouldn’t.
The only people she hadn’t told were her parents. Randolph had fallen on hard times after a number of poor investments and was busy selling holdings in order to pay off creditors. Rosalind had taken the remnants of her inheritance and returned to Italy where she bought a seaside villa on the Amalfi coast.
As dusk gathered, the last of the painting was completed. The men set up tents and the women the supper. Before eating, they gathered in a circle and bowed their heads while Luke led them in prayer.
Edgar added a few words for the child Esme carried.
“I’ve always loved Esme and it warms my heart to see her starting her own family. I feel very privileged to be here and part of all this.” His eyes shone with tears.
Henry, who was possibly the only one who hadn’t heard of Esme’s condition, stared at her slack-jawed.
“Finally,” he said with a sigh of happiness. “Finally there’s going to be someone around smaller than me!”
THE END
Also from Sasha Gold
Contemporary Romances
Sexy Little Thing
Kept Little Thing
Medieval Romances
Wicked Little Thing
Crimson, Book One of Medieval Guardians
Western Romances
All’s Fair, Book One of Love and War
Coming December 2014
Ebony, Book Two of Medieval Guardians
Blaise and Madeleine’s Story
And
Coming Winter 2014
In Love, Book Two of Love and War
Jenny and Dillan’s Story
All stories available on Kindle and Amazon.com.