The Perfect Wife Read online

  “I’m glad Mark said that. Growing up, I knew some women who had to do whatever their husbands wanted. Their husbands’ reputations came first.” She shuddered. “I used to think that was the way marriage worked. Being married to Tony, I realize it doesn’t have to be that way.”

  “You might have actually enjoyed being with Mark had you married him. There’s a lot more to him than his money.”

  “And you might have enjoyed being with Tony had you married him.” She winked. “I don’t need to tell you how exciting it is to find a critter invading your house, do I?”

  Natalie laughed. “No, you don’t. I’ve had my share of vermin that snuck into the house while growing up.”

  Velma grinned. “I don’t like it when they do, but it is kind of fun watching Tony take care of them. He’s like a knight in shining armor when he comes in to rescue me.”

  “I never thought of men coming in to take care of vermin as knights in shining armor.”

  “That’s probably because things like mice and snakes don’t scare you.”

  “You’re right. They don’t. I got so used to them that I was even taking care of them.”

  Velma grimaced. “Please tell me you’re joking.”

  Natalie thought about assuring her she was, but she found no reason to lie about it. “I used to set good traps. I can teach you how to make them if you want.”

  “I’d rather not learn that.” She finished her tea, set her cup on the tray, and then settled back in her seat. “I’ll let Tony handle those things for me. Besides, I have enough to do with learning how to cook meals. You and Jenny made cooking look easy.”

  “Cooking is easy.”

  Velma rolled her eyes. “Sure, it is.”

  “All you have to do is follow a recipe.”

  “So you say, but I’ve made enough burnt meals to prove otherwise.”

  “Maybe I should teach you.”

  “There’s no need. Angela’s been doing that.”

  “She has?” Natalie asked, surprised since she hadn’t heard anything about Angela in a while.

  “Yes. Angela comes out about twice a week to help me.”

  “How is she doing?”

  “Wonderful. She and Sep were made for each other. I don’t think they had to adjust to their marriage like we did. They just seemed to sort of fit together naturally.”

  Natalie had gotten that impression, too. “I suppose things could have been easier if we had married the other twin, but would we have been as happy as we are now?”

  “No. Angela was right. You were perfect for Mark, and I was perfect for Tony. At least she didn’t leave me to figure things out all by myself. If it weren’t for her, I don’t know if I would have been able to keep going during those first couple of weeks at the farm. I grew up used to all of this.” She gestured to the things in the room. “I’d never had to do anything myself. Out there, I had to learn to do everything.”

  “That’s not completely true,” she teased. “You just told me Tony’s taking care of the vermin.”

  “Alright, I do almost everything myself. It was scary at first, but I’ll admit that there’s a sense of accomplishment in doing things yourself. The work is hard, but it’s good, too.” Velma chuckled. “Can you believe I’m saying that? I used to think the only thing I’d ever find fulfillment in was helping my husband acquire more clients. These days, I’m happy when the laundry is all clean and I didn’t burn a meal.”

  “I have a confession to make. I don’t miss cooking and doing laundry.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to. It’s exhausting. Notice I said I was happy when the laundry is all clean and when I didn’t burn a meal. That’s all past tense. I like the satisfaction of knowing things turned out like they were supposed to.”

  “Yes, but those chores never end.”

  “Neither does the prospect of running into people like Fran. I hate to bring this up, but Omaha isn’t that big. You’re bound to run into her and those other women who’ve been giving you a difficult time. Do you think you’re prepared for that?”

  “I’m not going to join them for another social engagement. I’m not going to seek them out. I’ll deal with them when I have to, but I no longer care if they think I’m not sophisticated enough to be Mark’s wife. Mark loves me. That’s all that really matters.”

  “It is all that really matters. However, if you happen to be out and they approach you, act like whatever they say doesn’t bother you. It’s the only way to make people like that leave you alone.”

  “I see what you’re saying. It’s like what this boy in my school went through when another boy was picking on him. As long as the boy yelled back, the first one kept irritating him. But after the second boy ignored him for a while, the first one got bored and moved on.”

  “Exactly. It’s hard to keep a fire going when you stop putting wood into the fireplace.”

  Natalie nodded and finished her tea. It did feel good to have a plan in case Fran, Katherine, or someone else came up to her to tell her what she was doing wrong.

  “You’ll be fine,” Velma said. “You’ve got a peace about you that you didn’t have yesterday.”

  “Well, it helped that I talked to Mark about it and he was understanding. I should have talked to him sooner.”

  “At least you talked to him when you did.”

  “Yes, that’s true.” She smiled at her. “I’m glad you stopped by.”

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you all night. I just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

  “Thank you.” Natalie ran her thumb along the handle of her cup then ventured, “Velma, do you think we could be friends?”

  “I know I made things difficult for you. It’s no wonder you worried whether I’m your friend or not, but you’re the sweetest person I’ve ever met. I can see why Mark chose you over me.” Before Natalie could respond, she added, “I meant what I said. I’m glad things turned out the way they did.” She straightened up. “I have to go. I want to be back in time to make dinner for my husband, but I have an errand to do first. You make sure you keep your focus on Mark. Don’t let people like Fran get in your way.”

  “I won’t. I promise.” She stood up and walked with Velma to the front door. “Thank you for coming by. You’re always welcome here.”

  “I appreciate that. I will stop in from time to time, but I probably won’t be coming by much once the harvest begins. I hear it’s one of the busiest times of the year for farmers and their wives.”

  “It is. Do you think it’d be alright if I came out to help for a day or two?”

  Velma laughed. “You’re more than welcome to help. From what Tony’s aunt Jessica said, they can always use more help. Though, I don’t know why you’d want to subject yourself to all of that work when you could relax in this place.”

  Unable to resist teasing her, Natalie said, “I thought you said all that work gave you a sense of accomplishment.”

  “I did, but this is even more work than what I’ve been doing. I haven’t lost my wits. I’m not looking forward to doing even more work! I still prefer to spend quiet moments with Tony at places like the lake where I’m not doing anything.”

  “I bet you appreciate those quiet moments a lot more since you do all that work.”

  “Yes, I do. It makes the quiet moments that much more rewarding.” To her surprise, Velma reached out and hugged her. “If there’s anything you need, don’t hesitate to ask.”

  Then Velma turned to the door, thanked the butler, and left the house. Natalie watched as Velma walked down the steps and to the buggy she had parked in front of the house. Whoever would have thought Velma had it in her to hug someone? All along, Velma had seemed reserved. Natalie had never seen her express much emotion.

  Natalie suspected Tony was responsible for Velma allowing herself to be open to other people. Velma was no longer holding people at a distance. She was now welcoming them into her life, and, more importantly, her heart. There was no doubt about it. T
ony was exactly what Velma had needed.

  ***

  Late the next afternoon, Natalie was sewing a design on Mark’s pillowcase when Ben ran into the parlor, bypassing the startled butler. She almost pricked her finger with the needle as Ben rushed over to her.

  “Is Mark here?” Ben asked.

  “No.” She glanced at the clock. “He shouldn’t be home for another ten minutes.” Noting the way he ran his hands through his hair, she set the pillowcase down and stood up. “Has something bad happened?”

  He clenched his hair, and she thought for sure he was going to pull out fistfuls of the dark strands. “Yes.”

  “Is someone hurt?” This couldn’t involve Mark since Ben had come here to talk to him, but it had to be someone she knew since he came here.

  “Yes, a couple of men got hurt, but they’ll be fine. She only gave them minor injuries. But that’s not the worst of it.”

  A couple of men got hurt? They’ll be fine? She only gave them minor injuries? “What are you talking about?”

  “Annabelle. She got one of them pretty good, but the others will be fine.”

  She gasped. “Is Annabelle alright?”

  “She’s fine. Mad, but fine.” He finally released his hair and started pacing the floor. “She’s never going to forgive me. But I didn’t know what else to do. Everything was happening so fast, and I panicked. I said the first thing I thought of, and from there, everything spun out of control.”

  Natalie glanced at the doorway to make sure the butler was no longer there. This wasn’t something others needed to know about. “Ben, why don’t you sit down? Take a deep breath. Gather your thoughts. Try to relax.”

  “I can’t relax.” He stopped pacing and turned to her. “Do you have any peppermints?” He put a hand over his stomach and groaned.

  “I think so. Wait here. I’ll check.”

  She hurried out of the room. She knew this was something the maid was supposed to do, but she didn’t feel like taking the time to summon help. She went straight to the kitchen. Ignoring the surprised cook, she rummaged through the jars until she found the peppermints. Grabbing the whole jar, she rushed back to the doorway of the parlor.

  Ben was pacing back and forth, and he was mumbling something under his breath. She had no idea what could have happened to him. He was an absolute mess.

  Mark came in through the front door, and she ran over to him. “Ben just got here. He said he wanted to talk to you. He said something bad just happened.” She gestured to the parlor. “He’s in there.”

  Mark gave the butler his hat and leather briefcase then followed her into the parlor. “What’s going on?” he asked Ben.

  Ben glanced his way then came over to him. “I married Annabelle.”

  “You did what?” both Mark and Natalie asked in unison.

  “I didn’t mean to. It just happened,” Ben replied with a wince. Then he noticed the jar she was holding. “Does that have peppermints in it?”

  She nodded and lifted the lid.

  To her surprise, he took the whole jar and plopped down in a chair. Then he shoved a couple of pieces into his mouth.

  Natalie gave Mark a startled look. They had carefully laid out a plan to get everyone in the family together to talk to Annabelle about Kenneth, and they were supposed to do that at the dinner Mark’s parents were going to host.

  “Excuse us for a moment,” she told Ben. Then she led Mark aside and whispered, “You didn’t already talk to your parents, did you?”

  “No,” Mark whispered back. “I haven’t had time to talk to them yet.”

  Natalie didn’t know what to think. She took another good look at Mark, and then, on one accord, they both bolted back over to Ben.

  “What happened?” Mark asked. “How did you get Annabelle to marry you?”

  “I didn’t,” Ben replied after he swallowed a couple of peppermints. “The outlaws did.”

  “Outlaws? What outlaws?” Natalie asked.

  “There were three of them,” Ben said. “I don’t know what they looked like. They all had bandanas over their faces and hats. I was coming home from helping someone fix a fence when I heard someone screaming. I followed the direction of the screams and saw Annabelle running from two men on horseback. Those men were the outlaws with those bandanas and hats.” Then, as if he felt it necessary, he added, “I don’t know where the third horse went.”

  “Annabelle was being pursued by outlaws?” Natalie asked.

  Ben nodded and picked out another peppermint from the jar. “I think she’d managed to get off of one of the horses. I didn’t see her do it, but by the time I got to them, she had one of the outlaws rolling over in pain in the grass, and she was dodging the other two.” He shook his head. “I didn’t think. I just acted. I saw the other two men advancing on her, and I urged my horse to hurry over to them. Looking back, I think she probably could have gotten away from them if I hadn’t intervened.”

  “My parents made sure she could take care of herself if she ever needed to,” Mark replied. “She learned to fight at an early age.”

  “I wish I had known that,” Ben said. “If I had, I would have left her alone.”

  “But you didn’t know, so you intervened and now you’re married,” Natalie spoke up, encouraging Ben to keep telling the story.

  “Right,” Ben replied. “I called out for the men to leave her alone, and the next thing I knew, one of the men had a gun in my face and asked me why I was getting involved. I said that I knew Annabelle. I had a personal interest in making sure no harm came to her. They argued that I didn’t have a right to be interested in her because she was already spoken for. They said she was to marry someone else.” His eyes grew wide. “That’s when I blurted it out. I didn’t even think about it. I just said it.”

  “Said what?” Natalie pressed, wishing Ben would just get to the point. The whole story had her on pins and needles. She didn’t need the drama of him dragging it out.

  Ben winced. “I told them she was expecting my child, so she had to marry me instead of the other man.” Then he grabbed more peppermints from the jar and put one in his mouth.

  “You told them you got her in the family way?” Mark asked.

  “It was wrong. I know it was wrong,” Ben said. “But it was the only way I could think of to stop them from hauling her off to marry some unsavory man. I mean, they were outlaws. I couldn’t let her marry an outlaw.”

  “So how did you actually marry her?” Natalie asked.

  “Well, they said if I had actually gotten her with child, I would do the right thing and marry her,” Ben replied. “So I told them I was going to marry her. I thought they would let things end there, but they didn’t. They insisted I make things right immediately.” He put another peppermint into his mouth. “I think they did that because they thought I was lying. I’ve never been good at lying. Mark, you know that.”

  “Ben,” Natalie began in an attempt to keep him focused, “how did you get married to her?”

  “They dragged me and Annabelle to a church and found a preacher to marry us,” Ben said.

  “And Annabelle went along with it?” Mark asked, not hiding his surprise.

  Ben winced again. “No. She protested the entire time, but the preacher kept telling her she should have thought about saying no before she allowed me to take her innocence.” He clutched his stomach. “I’m going to be sick.”

  “Where is Annabelle right now?” Natalie asked.

  “She’s at her parents,” Ben said. “I wanted to explain everything, but she refused to let me talk to them. She won’t even say anything to me.” He looked at Mark. “You know how mad she was that time we almost ran into her by accident with that cart and she ended up in the mud? This is much worse.”

  “You can’t let Annabelle scare you,” Mark replied. “She’s harmless. Sure, she seems intimidating, but she’s really not.”

  “You didn’t see the black eye she gave one of those men,” Ben said. “And that wasn’t th
e one who was rolling around in the grass in pain. The more I think about it, the more I think she’s right. She had the situation under control. She didn’t need my help.”

  “Well, I think it’s wonderful you stepped in to save her,” Natalie said. “You were trying to protect her.”

  Ben shook his head. “She doesn’t see it that way. She was saving herself when I came along and messed everything up.”

  “But you didn’t mean to,” Natalie insisted. “Surely, that has to count for something.”

  “Annabelle didn’t want to marry me. I just forced her into something she didn’t want.” His gaze went to Mark. “Was she still interested in Mr. Gordon’s nephew?”

  “The nephew is no good,” Mark said. “You did her a favor.”

  Ben rolled his eyes. “Doing her a favor would have been coming up with a better lie than saying she was expecting my child. I should have come up with something better than that. You would have come up with something better if you’d been there. You always do a better job of thinking fast when the situation calls for it.”

  Natalie glanced over at Mark, and Mark shrugged as if to say that it wasn’t his fault people were gullible enough to believe him.

  “I don’t know what to do.” Ben took out a couple more peppermints from the jar. “Do I go back to your parents and try to explain things, or should I wait for all of this to calm down so we can all go back to our lives?”

  “You’re married to her,” Natalie said. “You can’t go back to your life as if the marriage never happened.”

  “I can’t?” Ben asked.

  “No,” Natalie replied, surprised he even thought it was a possibility. “Ben, you’re her husband now. You have a responsibility to her.”

  “But she doesn’t want to be married to me.”

  “That doesn’t change the fact that the preacher married you two.”

  Ben stared at her for a moment then looked at Mark. “Is she right?”

  “Yes, she’s right,” Mark said. “Marriage isn’t like buying a hat. You can’t return a wife for a refund.”