Wiping the tears from her face, she carefully removed every item from its box and put it away. Somehow the joy of the trip had gone away and in its place was deep, deep heartache the likes of which she'd never felt before.
''what have you done to my cousin?"
Turning toward his accuser, Sam faced Lydia head on. "I'm not sure."
He was in the front parlor of their home, sipping at a glass of tasteless lemonade. It figured that he fixed things with his family only to ruin them with Maggie. Life was strange that way.
"Did you ask her to marry you?"
"I thought that's what I was about to do"
"What did you say to her and tell me everything, word for word. If I'm going to figure out where you went wrong I'll need to know every last bit." Flopping down on the overstuffed sofa, Lydia settled down for a long chat.
"We were walking down the bridal path. I was telling her how I was going to buy the land from your husband."
Picking at a leftover butter cookie, she nodded. "Go on"
"She seemed to like the idea enough"
"Did you tell her the land would be for both of you to build your house on?" Green eyes flashed at him.
"I said I was going to build a house there"
Shaking her head, she reached for another cookie. "Well, there's your first mistake"
"Look, Lydia, I've never done anything like this before"
"I should hope not!"
"I love Maggie and I want to spend the rest of my life with her."
"Why didn't you tell her that?"
"I told her I liked having a woman as my business partner. And I was about to tell her how much she means to me and how I love her, except she ran away and now she won't come out of her room."
"You told her she was a good business partner. Excuse me for saying so, Samuel, but that wasn't very romantic of you" Rolling her green eyes heavenward, Lydia jumped up so fast Sam almost dropped the glass he'd been holding on to.
"I'll go have a few words with her."
Running after her, Sam caught her just before she was about to go upstairs. "Don't do this, Lydia. Maggie and I need to work this out on our own." He didn't know why, but it was important they see it through without interference from their well-meaning families.
"All right. But you must promise you'll come to me if you need any more advice."
"Promise" He accepted her peck on the cheek and walked her to the door. "And Lydia?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." Before she was completely out the door, he could have sworn he heard her saying, "Don't keep us waiting too long."
He paced around the hallway for a bit, angry at himself for being such a coward when it came to love. Frankly, he'd been scared. Marrying Maggie would mean the end of his wanderlust. On the other hand, the thought of living without her was even worse to consider.
He was such a fool in love.
Propping an elbow on the newel post at the bottom of the staircase, he pondered his predicament. There was always the ogre's way of handling the situation, which would be to go upstairs and pound on Maggie's door until she opened it. Or he could go out to Miss Margaret's rose garden and pick a bunch of roses, then present them to Maggie on bended knee.
The grandfather clock in the great room chimed the half hour and Samuel still hadn't reached a decision.
Upstairs in her bedroom Maggie began unpacking the new clothes. After she'd put away the pretty silky chemises and the soft hosiery, all that remained on the bed was the gorgeous sapphire blue evening gown. It was the priciest garment she'd ever purchased. Fingering the satin material, she was glad she'd splurged.
Taking off her traveling clothes, she stepped into the gown. The dress fit her like a glove. Running her hands down the front, then plucking at the three-quarter length sleeves, Maggie thought the only thing missing was a hair adornment. Rushing over to the dressing table, she opened a rosewood jewelry box. Nestled in the lining was a pearl-encrusted hair comb.
Quickly pulling the pins from her hair, she brushed the long locks out. Then gathering her hair off to one side, she placed the comb. Swishing to the left and then to the right, Maggie thought she looked stunning. The finishing touch would be the matching pearl necklace her father had given her on her sixteenth birthday.
With one final glance back at the mirror, she walked out of her bedroom.
Pausing at the top of the staircase, she saw Samuel sitting on the bottom step. His elbows resting on his knees, she could tell he was lost in thought. Her skirt swished as she started down. Hearing her, he turned.
She would carry the look on his face in her heart forever. His mouth opened slightly and in his eyes, oh those handsome green eyes, was the look of desire. But more than that she saw a radiant look of adoration and love.
Standing, he rested one foot on the next riser and waited for her to reach him. Deliberately, Maggie took her sweet time, letting him take in every nuance of her.
When she finally stood face to face with him, she paused.
"Samuel, I don't know what happened with us while we were on the bridal path, but I'm going to say this only one time. I love you, and if you'll have me for your wife, I'd like for us to be married."
His look became quite serious then and for one frightening moment she thought he might turn down her offer. Straightening her spine, Maggie held her ground. Looking at him, she knew there was no other man on this earth for her.
"I'm not going to take no for an answer." She'd meant to make a bold statement, but instead the words came out in a whisper.
Taking hold of her hands, he said, "Then I guess I'll have to agree to become your husband. But before I do I want to tell you that you are my life. Every breath I take from this day forward will be for you."
"Such fancy words coming from you," she said, feeling the first tear falling from her eyes.
His pale eyebrows rose. "Oh, and did I tell you how beautiful you look?"
Shaking her head, she replied, "You must have forgotten."
"Maggie Monroe, you are the most beautiful woman I know. Maggie, I'm sorry about earlier. I don't know what happened to me."
Laughing and crying at the same time, she fell into his arms. "Lucky for you, Mr. Clay, I forgive easily."
Of course they both knew how stubborn she could be. Excitement coursed through her, causing her to begin babbling, "You know, come to think of it, you're really not my type. I don't even know why I fell in love with you. I do know that once I did there was no turning back"
"Maggie, stop talking," he whispered.
Gently pulling her down the stairs, he gathered her up and began to hum the same waltz tune he'd used when he taught her to dance. Before she knew what was happening, they were waltzing around her aunt's foyer.
"How did I get to be so lucky?"
"You came to Surprise. Didn't you know good things happen to people here, Samuel?"
"Indeed they do" Bending his head, he placed his lips upon hers, drinking in their warmth.
They swayed together to music only they could hear. Leaning his head back, he looked at her once more. "We're going to make beautiful children together."
"Who said anything about children?" she asked, wearing a smirk.
"I did. We should have at least four of them. There's a good even number."
"Ah, my Samuel, always putting the cart before the horse"
From the edge of the bridal path Margaret Monroe Sinclair stood, aided by neither a wheelchair nor a cane, thinking about how her life had come full circle. On the wings of a promise she'd settled in this small, unassuming town of Surprise as a young bride full of hope.
Seasons had come and gone. Her husband had left her with a legacy of hope for the future. And Margaret hadn't disappointed his memory, for single-handedly, or so she liked to think, she'd brought this town back from the brink of obscurity.
The town of Surprise, surrounded by the beauty of the Catskill Mountains, was filling with new bu
siness ventures and young families. Her own family had doubled in size. Turning at the sound of laughter, she smiled at the sight of Abigail with her rounding belly, hugging her husband Cole close.
Lydia and Alexander were standing by the long refreshment tables set up under the apple tree, helping their children pile their plates with food.
And lastly there was Maggie, the toughest of the lot. She and her new husband stood side by side greeting their wedding guests.
"Miss Margaret, are you happy?"
Her lifelong friend John Wagner had slipped next to her unnoticed. "I'm very happy, John."
Wiggling his thick, springy eyebrows at her, he said, "You certainly accomplished all that you set out to do. I wouldn't have thought it possible."
Folding her arms in front of her, she frowned at him. "With enough courage and foresight, anything is possible, John"
"Margaret, you have enough of those sentiments for the entire town."
Pride welled up inside of her bringing a rush of unexpected tears to her eyes. "I love this place and now I know the town of Surprise will be here for generations to come"
The sun began its descent behind the Catskill Mountains. In the pink haze of evening tide, birds chirped merrily while butterflies danced from one flower to the next seeking the sweet nectar. And as twilight began to settle in, a small town celebrated the continuation of life.
Table of Contents
This title was previously published by Avalon Books; this version has been reproduced from the Avalon book archive files.
WOMEN OF SURPRISE 03: Making Over Maggie Page 11