“Without us?” Peter shook his head.
“With people who care about him and whom he loves,” Samantha said. “He’s needed here. We have our own lives now.”
Peter pulled a small canvas bag out of his money belt. “Fine. Here’s most of the money I owe you. Now you can return to Washington and go to college.”
Samantha touched the rough, dirty pouch. “Where is my home? Washington or Skagway?”
Miles moved closer.
“You can’t live in Skagway by yourself. It’s not safe. Take the money.” Peter held out the bag.
Miles took her hand. “She doesn’t have to be alone. I’m not going over the pass with you, Peter. I’m staying in Skagway. The two of you dragged me into a ministry I never dreamed of at seminary. Samantha made me confront evil with good because she saw the need in the sporting women’s hearts. Now the town has built a church and needs men to preach the Gospel. That’s a harvest richer than Klondike gold and one I mean to pursue.”
“You’re not going with me to the Klondike?”
“No.”
“Surely you’ve met others you can travel with,” Samantha said.
“Yes.” Peter looked troubled. “But I don’t trust anyone like I do Miles. I thought I’d do the heavy work while he could minister to the miners, just like we did on the trail. I’m not a preacher. I can’t do that.”
“Here we have it.” Donald clasped his son by both shoulders. “I’ve prayed you would embrace the man God created you to be. You don’t have to be a missionary to serve God. Your desire to go to the Klondike could be for gold. But maybe it’s really an adventure for a young man who stayed with his mother and sister far longer than he wanted so his father could do a good work. This is your time, Peter. Go into the world and follow where God is leading you. You have my blessing.”
“Do you want to come with me, Sam?” her twin asked.
Samantha stood. “I love you, Peter, but it’s time we went our own ways. I don’t want to go to the Klondike. I’ve found what I want here.”
The Tlingits hummed. Her father stirred the fire. Miles stood beside her and tilted her chin toward him. “We’re both doing a good work in Skagway. Will you marry me so we can serve the town together?”
Samantha gazed into his eyes a long moment. “Wait a minute.” She looked him up and down. “Have you grown, Miles? How tall are you?”
“Six feet. Why?”
Peter burst into laughter.
“I would love to marry you,” Samantha said. “Pa can do the honors.”
“What does my height have to do with it?”
Samantha hugged him. “Absolutely nothing.”
Donald stood to pronounce a benediction. “Mary was proud of all three of you, but today your plans complete her dreams and prayers.”
He faced his son. “I know how thankful she was you stayed in Port Orchard. You go to the Klondike with her blessing and mine.”
Donald smiled at Samantha. “She would have rejoiced that you finally learned you don’t have to live in Peter’s shadow. She wanted you to choose what is important for your own life.”
He shook Miles’s hand. “Mary prayed long for your calling, Miles, and would have been even more grateful you stood by your friends and gave them the opportunity to find themselves.” He caressed Samantha’s cheek. “I think you’ve got the best end of this deal.”
Donald gathered the three into another hug. “Mary, I am sure, is rejoicing with the angels right now. Peter will have his adventure, and today we’ll have a wedding. Anything else?”
Miles smiled at Samantha. “May I kiss my bride?”
Samantha looked up at him. “Yes.”
Historical Notes
While Miles and the Harris family are fictional characters, the story of the sporting women’s exodus from Skagway after hearing Reverend R. W. Dickey’s funeral sermon is true. Steamship captain O’Brien met Dickey on the beach after the service and volunteered to take the sporting women back to Seattle at no cost. Sourdough Jim contributed one thousand dollars to cover their costs. Mollie Walsh knew “Lucy,” and Mollie set up a restaurant at the top of White Pass in the spring of 1898.
The Christmas totem pole described in The Gold Rush Christmas was carved by Reverend David Fison of Alaska in 1987. I used the concept with his permission and my thanks. You can see a photo of it at my website: www.michelleule.com.
Michelle Ule is the author of six bestselling novellas, two novels, and a biography of Mrs. Oswald Chambers. Married to a now retired submarine officer whom she followed all over the world, she lives with her family in northern California. You can learn more about her at www.michelleule.com.
More Christmas Romance Collections!
Christmas Next Door
Visit an Old West Texas town where a mysterious benefactor leaves gifts each Christmas, but also where four pairs of neighbors battle over hearsay, secrets, and mysteries. Even as romantic tensions increase, love seems beyond reach. Can their problems bring them closer to share in the generous spirit of the season?
Paperback / 978-1-64352-167-1 / $14.99
Treasured Christmas Brides Page 38