Boaz's Wager Read online

  So why couldn’t he just be happy and accept it?

  Chapter Fifteen

  “And then Herb said Boaz insisted he refer to his violin as a fiddle,” Rachel said between fits of laughter later that day.

  Eva glanced up from the worktable where she was making sandwiches for lunch and studied her friend. “This amuses you?”

  “Of course, it does. Don’t you see what this means?”

  “That you think the word ‘fiddle’ is as funny as I do?” she ventured, not really sure where her friend was going with this conversation.

  “No, silly. It means that Boaz is jealous of you and Herb. And that means Boaz is sweet on you.”

  “You’re right, Rachel. Boaz is jealous. He thought I was falling in love with Herb instead of simply enjoying his music. I could tell that by the way he winced when I told him I’d like to listen to more of it.”

  “Wonderful,” Rachel replied in excitement.

  “Well, yes and no.” When Rachel’s eyebrows furrowed, she continued, “Boaz does care for me. I know it as surely as I know my own name, but he’s afraid to act on his feelings. Don’t tell Herb I told you this, but Boaz doesn’t want to be…intimate…with me because he lost his first wife in childbirth and blames himself for it.”

  “He blames himself?”

  “Because he got her with child.”

  “But he couldn’t have helped what happened to her. It’s a tragedy, to be sure, but he couldn’t have prevented it.”

  “While that’s true, he’s scared the same thing will happen to me.”

  Understanding lit up Rachel’s eyes. “Oh. The poor man.”

  “Yes.” And poor me.

  Eva didn’t want to feel sorry for herself. Really, she didn’t. But it was hard to think that all she would ever share with Boaz was something as chaste as a friendship. If she wanted to spend the rest of her life with a friend, she would have shared a house with another woman.

  “Can you be happy being just a friend with him?” Rachel asked.

  She sighed. “I’m happy with my children. They’re so sweet.”

  “But?”

  “But Boaz kissed me yesterday and—”

  “He kissed you? I thought he said he wasn’t going to do anything interesting with you.”

  Noting the way Rachel said ‘interesting’, Eva couldn’t help but chuckle. “But he did kiss me. And in that kiss, I learned he cares about me. He wants to do something interesting with me. Knowing that, I can’t be happy just being his friend.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know yet, but I’ll figure something out.”

  Rachel opened her mouth to speak when the front door opened.

  Eva set the bread down and hurried to the entryway, surprised when she saw Boaz putting his hat on the hook by the door. “I didn’t think you’d be here until tonight.”

  “Do you want me to come back later?”

  “No. That would be silly. You’re just in time for lunch. Come into the kitchen.”

  Though he seemed hesitant, he followed her and stopped when he saw Rachel. “Oh, I didn’t realize you had company.”

  “I’m not staying for lunch,” Rachel told him. “I just came by to say hello. It was nice talking to you, Eva.”

  “It was nice talking to you, too,” Eva replied. “You want to take a walk in the park tomorrow?”

  “I’d love to.” She glanced at Boaz. “It was nice seeing you again.”

  He returned the sentiment then turned to pull a chair out from the table.

  Rachel looked at Eva and mouthed, “Maybe he came home to see you.”

  Rolling her eyes, Eva waved her out of the kitchen. “Are sandwiches alright?” she asked Boaz after her friend left.

  “Those will be fine.” After he sat down, he asked, “Where are the children?”

  “They’re taking a nap. I would have gotten them up sooner had Rachel not stopped by.”

  “Do they nap this time of day?”

  “Most of the time. There are times when they’re not tired, though that is more often the case with Leroy than Hannah. But it’s not surprising since he’s older.”

  “You’re good with them.”

  Pleased he should pay her a high compliment, she smiled at him as she finished making the sandwiches. “Thank you, Boaz. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

  “Surely, you’ve received better than that.”

  “No, not really. Don’t get me wrong, my mother and father loved me. My brothers and sister treated me well. But I didn’t have anything that made me stand out from everyone else.” She shrugged. “It was to be expected in a large family. I was the youngest of six children.”

  “But certainly you had a talent that was recognized by someone.”

  “Well, I was asked to be a teacher. I hadn’t finished the school I was at but was told I was the most qualified person they could think of. It was the best compliment I received up to now. Being a teacher is one thing. Being a mother seems much more important. This way, I get to be a real part of the children’s lives. It’s nice.”

  Not sure if she should have rambled on as she had, she turned her back to him and retrieved the plates. She didn’t make it a habit of opening herself up to someone. For the most part, she liked to keep personal things to herself, but she’d gotten comfortable with him and felt as if she could tell him anything.

  “For what it’s worth,” he called out, “I couldn’t have asked for a better mother for Leroy and Hannah. I’m glad you came here.”

  Heat rose to her cheeks. Another compliment. And this one better than the first. Unable to hide her pleasure, she glanced over at him, her smile wider than before. “Thank you.” She cleared her throat and set the plates on the worktable. “I was on my way to teach at another schoolhouse, and though I didn’t think I’d be saying this when the outlaws kidnapped me and Rachel, I’m glad I’m here, too.”

  She lowered her gaze and focused on putting the sandwiches on their respective plates.

  “It’s nice not being alone anymore, too,” he said, his voice almost so quiet she wasn’t sure she heard him right.

  She dared a look in his direction and saw that he was the one who was avoiding eye contact. For a moment, she thought it was a shame that he insisted on fighting his feelings for her. It’d been her dream that she might be loved with great passion, a passion that would demand a man kiss her as if his very life depended on it, just as he had kissed her last night. A woman would be very happy being kissed like that all the time.

  But there was still hope. He did want to be a husband to her. A real one, not just on paper. And somehow, someway, she’d figure out how to make that happen. She just had to pick the right time to do it.

  She placed their meals on the table and patted his arm. “It is nice that I’m not alone either.” Before he could respond, she quickly removed her hand and hurried to wake the children.

  ***

  “That was a lovely meal, Heather. Thank you for having us over,” Eva said that Saturday as she sat with Heather on the porch while the children played nearby.

  “We love having you, Boaz, and your children over,” Heather told her. “Being with you has done Boaz so much good. I can’t recall a time when I’ve seen him happier.”

  Pleased, Eva asked, “Really?”

  “Really.” A horse neighed and Heather leaned forward in her chair, shielding her eyes against the sun as she looked out over the land. “I think that’s Patty.”

  “Who?” Eva followed her gaze and saw a woman riding a horse toward the house. She rode sidesaddle which slowed her down, but even so, Eva could tell she was in a hurry.

  “Patty Dix… I mean, Patty Wilson. She’s a good friend of mine. I think you’ll like her. She’s a lot of fun.”

  Eva stood and followed Heather who bounded down the porch steps. With a glance at the yard, she saw Leroy throwing rocks. Her gaze went to the porch swing where Hannah was humming a tune
to her doll. She looked happiest when she was playing quietly by herself. Eva couldn’t recall ever coming across a child who was so shy.

  The horse neighed, bringing Eva’s attention to Patty who jumped down, an impressive feat since she was wearing a dress. Eva couldn’t recall a time when she’d seen anyone so skilled with an animal.

  “Patty, I want you to meet Eva,” Heather introduced as Eva approached them. “Eva just married Boaz.” Looking at Eva, she added, “Patty just got married, too. She married Greg Wilson.”

  Patty tied the horse’s reins to the post and rolled her eyes. “I’d hardly call what Greg and I have a marriage.”

  “Why? What’s wrong? Is Greg not happy?”

  “That’s an understatement,” she grumbled and headed for the porch, her shoulders slumped. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve cooked and cleaned for him. I even brought him a newspaper and tried to rub his back. But does he appreciate any of it?” She turned to face the two women who followed her up the porch. “No! With the way he’s acting, you’d swear I just ruined his life.” She paused for a moment and smiled at Eva. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Eva returned her greeting. If one thing could be said for Patty, she was lively. She didn’t seem like the type who accepted everything that came her way. Instead, she went out and got what she wanted. Intrigued, Eva listened as Patty continued moaning about her ill-fated marriage.

  “I just don’t understand Greg.” Patty plopped in the rocking chair across from them and crossed her arms. “I thought men were pretty simple to figure out. As long as their bellies are full and they’re not tripping over things in their house, they should be satisfied. At least my pa’s an easy man to please. He’s happy for the littlest things anyone does for him. And look at Mitch.” She gestured to Heather. “He was smiling and talking about you nonstop when he married you. I swear, he’d never been that happy before. But will Greg see what a blessing I am? Of course not. And why? Because he’s stupid.”

  “Oh, you don’t think he’s stupid,” Heather replied. “A little misguided perhaps but not stupid.”

  Lowering her voice so Hannah wouldn’t overhear, she said, “I went to his bed wearing nothing, and he didn’t do anything.”

  “You what?” Eva asked, shocked that a woman would do something so…so…bold.

  “I gave him what every man dreams of,” Patty replied, shooting her a meaningful look. “And what did he do? He left the room. Now, go on and tell me that’s not stupid.”

  Heather bit her lower lip. “Well, it doesn’t take much to encourage a man.”

  “Exactly. And honestly, I don’t know how I could have been more encouraging than that.” Patty grunted and leaned back in her chair. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried everything but nothing’s worked. The fool keeps going on and on about how he’ll figure a way out of the marriage.”

  Eva glanced at the barn where Boaz helped Mitch with the evening chores and thought her situation wasn’t all that different. Not really. They were both married to men who didn’t want a real marriage. While Boaz wanted to be married, he only wanted a wife of convenience so in no way could she consider that a real marriage.

  What Mitch and Heather had was a real marriage. What Herb and Rachel had was a real marriage, too. And anyone could tell how happy they were by simply looking at them. It’d be nice to have that kind of happiness in her own marriage, just as Patty wanted in hers. She couldn’t blame the woman for being frustrated, especially since she went out of her way to go into her husband’s bed without a single thing on.

  Heather reached out and clasped Patty’s hand. “You haven’t tried the most important thing of all. You haven’t been yourself.”

  She rolled her eyes. “If being myself would work, he would have married me a long time ago.”

  “I don’t recall you being anything but the person you think he wants you to be.”

  “A man doesn’t want a woman who can lasso cattle better than he can. Don’t get me wrong. Greg manages very well on the ranch, but there are some things he could do much better. Like breaking his horse? I could have handled that one, but he paid Boaz to do it. And why? Because he’s a man and I’m a woman. Greg expects me to be feminine at all times.”

  “Patty,” Eva began, “just because a man wants to be married, it doesn’t mean he wants a wife.”

  Eyebrows furrowed, Patty looked at her. “What?”

  “Boaz only wanted to marry me so he could have a mother for his children. He sleeps in the parlor and I sleep in the bedroom.”

  Heather’s eyes widened. “Was that his idea?”

  “Well,” Eva began, “at first it was mine because I didn’t want to be with him right away. Then when I was ready, I found out he planned for us to sleep in separate rooms all along.”

  “When I married Mitch, I thought he wouldn’t want to be with me right away because we rushed through everything.”

  “So he slept on the couch?” Patty asked.

  “No,” she slowly replied. “He slept in the same room with me.”

  “And?”

  “And…it went as you’d expect it to.”

  “But it didn’t happen that way for me,” Patty pointed out, “and it’s not happening that way for Eva. You know what I think? I think some men don’t know a good thing when they have it.”

  “Or they’re too afraid to accept it when they do,” Eva added without bothering to think over whether or not she should disclose so much about her marriage. It was nice to know she wasn’t the only one with a husband who was reluctant to sleep with her. “I understand why, though.” It wasn’t fair to him that she didn’t explain things further. “Since his first wife died in childbirth, he’s afraid I’ll suffer the same fate.”

  Heather pressed her hand to her heart. “You weren’t here before he straightened his life out. He’s been through so much, and he took her death hard.”

  “I figured that. It’s why I’m not so upset about it. Sure, I’d like to have something like you and Mitch do, but I realize the situation is different.” After a pause, she added, “I think it’d help Patty to know she’s not the only one going through this. I know I feel better knowing I’m not the only wife who doesn’t have a normal marriage.”

  “I feel better too, Eva,” Patty agreed. “It’s nice to know not every woman has it easy. I’m sorry, Heather, but it’s not fair to watch Mitch fall all over himself to impress you. You have him wrapped around your finger. I honestly don’t think there’s anything he wouldn’t do for you.”

  Heather glanced between them and shrugged. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “There’s nothing you can say,” Patty replied. “We’re glad you don’t have to go through what we do. It’s horrible. Eva,” she looked at her, “the notion that you’re going to die in childbirth might be possible, but I don’t think it’s likely. Most women survive it just fine.”

  “I know that,” Eva said, “but I don’t think Boaz can be logical when it comes to this.”

  “I know it doesn’t seem like it,” Heather began, “but Boaz is trying to protect you.”

  “I realize that. It’s the only reason why I don’t try to knock some sense into him.”

  Patty giggled. “I wouldn’t mind doing that to Greg, and I would if I didn’t want to kiss him so much. So tell me, Heather. What secrets do you have for us? What can we do to nudge our men in the right direction?”

  Heather fiddled with her hair. “I don’t know.”

  “What do you do if you want Mitch to join you in bed?”

  Heather’s face went beet red, but Eva was glad Patty asked the question.

  Clearing her throat, Heather softly said, “It doesn’t take much to get him interested. A touch in certain places, a lingering kiss, telling him I’ll be in bed waiting for him… He’s not hard to encourage like Greg is.”

  Patty rocked back and forth, tapping the edge of the chair’s arm with her fingers. “I wonder if I can get
close enough to Greg to try the touching and kissing thing. I think if I told him I’d be in bed, he’d run out of the house.”

  Though it wasn’t funny, Eva felt a chuckle rise up in her throat. “I’m sorry, Patty. I didn’t mean to laugh.”

  “Oh, I know it sounds ridiculous. It is ridiculous! No man in his right mind would refuse to take a woman up on the offer to be intimate. That’s why there’s something wrong with Greg up here.” She tapped her head. “I just wish there was some medicine I could give him to cure him of his stupidity.”

  “Alas, no such thing exists.”

  Heather shifted in her chair and leaned toward them. “Patty, if you really want Greg to act like a husband, then do something about it. Don’t sit idly by while he’s running out of the room.”

  “And what do you suggest I do?” Patty asked. “Lasso and tie him to the bed?”

  “Why not?”

  “Oh, be serious. Patty can’t do that,” Eva argued, glancing at Hannah to make sure she was still out of hearing range from them.

  “Sure, she can,” Heather began. “If anyone can lasso any moving thing, it’s Patty. She can make Greg stay in the house with her. She doesn’t have to tie him to a bed, but she can make it so that he has to spend time with her and get to know her. And who knows? Maybe if he’s on the run and she catches him, he might be impressed and see her in a new light.”

  “But that’s not ladylike,” Patty replied. “You know that horrid woman at church wouldn’t like me doing something like that. She’s always telling me I act too much like a man for my own good. She’s the one who gave me the idea to let him rescue me and it worked. He married me to save me from John Meyer.”

  Noting Heather’s grimace, Eva asked, “Who’s John Meyer?”

  “Just the worst piece of scum in Lewistown,” Heather muttered. “Patty, you’re asking for trouble by arranging something with John.”