The Marriage Agreement Page 5

  “Thank you, Sally.”

  “I should be thanking you. I’ll take any excuse to get that break.”

  Excited about tomorrow, Laura went to work on her wedding dress.

  Chapter Six

  “Come on, Elliot,” Jesse said as the boy scooted over to the other stall in the barn. Jesse groaned and peered around the cow he was milking. “Elliot, get back over here!”

  Elliot, however, was in no mood to listen to his father. He grabbed the stall door and pulled himself to his feet. The horse peered down at him, and Elliot laughed and reached up for it. He lost his balance and fell on his bottom.

  Jesse hurried to grab him before he could climb into the stall. “You’re too quick for me, you know that?”

  He searched the barn for something he could put Elliot in that would ensure the boy wouldn’t run off…or rather, scoot off. If Elliot was already hard to take care of at ten months, how was he going to be when he was one? Or two? Or even three? Just at what age did children stop getting into trouble?

  His gaze went to the metal tub, but the last time he put Elliot in it, the boy had managed to climb out of it. He couldn’t put him in the trunk either. The trunk was full of his tools. He caught sight of the ropes and reins he used for the horse. Then he looked at one of the poles supporting the barn roof. No, he couldn’t tie Elliot to the pole. That seemed like a cruel thing to do to a child whose only crime was wanting to explore the world.

  But, maybe he could put the rope around him and Elliot, thereby securing Elliot to his back. If he did it just right, Elliot would hardly feel it.

  The cow mooed impatiently for Jesse to finish milking her.

  Jesse glanced from the cow to the rope. It was either this or ask Fanny to help, and he’d rather not talk to her. Just as he was about to head for the rope, he heard a buggy approaching.

  His heart leapt in hope. Maybe it was Laura. Maybe she’d come out here to watch Elliot.

  He hurried out of the barn, and thankfully, Laura was in the buggy with Sally Larson. Sally pulled the buggy to a stop, and Laura hopped out and ran over to him.

  With a wide smile, Laura looked at Elliot and tapped his nose in that playful way of hers. “Did you miss me?” she asked the boy.

  Elliot held his arms out to her, so Jesse let her hold him. “I wasn’t sure you were going to come out until the wedding,” Jesse said.

  “I know,” Laura replied, hugging Elliot and resting her head on top of his. “I tried to get out here sooner, but my parents haven’t been making it easy.”

  Jesse watched as Sally got out of the buggy. “Your father came by here two nights ago.”

  Her jaw dropped. “He did what?”

  “He thought you were staying here.”

  “I went to Mr. and Mrs. Larson’s home. They were kind enough to invite me over so I didn’t have to go back to my parents. They aren’t happy with this marriage.”

  He thought she was going to say more, but she returned her attention to Elliot and cooed at him.

  Sally came over to them and smiled. “You have a nice place here, Jesse.”

  “Thanks. I had some help from Joe. You remember him?” Jesse asked.

  Sally nodded. “Who can forget the man who led us all the way to Omaha?”

  “He does more than lead wagon trains,” Jesse said. “He also builds houses and barns. And he does a good job of it, too,” he added.

  “You don’t mean he built these by himself, do you?” Sally asked, gesturing to the barn and two homes on the land.

  “No,” Jesse said with a chuckle. “If he could, he would. I never met anyone with more ambition than him. But he brought out a couple of men he knows, and they helped me build all of this. I owe him one.”

  “He sounds like he can do anything,” Sally replied, not hiding her surprise. “If I were older, I might pursue him.”

  Laura took her attention off of Elliot then shot Sally a teasing smile. “You should have made your move while we were on the wagon train.”

  Jesse blinked in surprise. He couldn’t recall a time when he heard Laura joke about something. But then, he supposed she hadn’t had a reason to joke out here. Not with Fanny. Not with him.

  “I should have,” Sally said. “But I was too busy chasing after my brothers so they’d behave.” She crossed her arms and sighed. “I honestly don’t know what my mother would have done if I wasn’t a girl. God knows a boy doesn’t do as much as a girl does.” She glanced at Jesse. “I mean children, not adults like you.”

  Laura chuckled and told Jesse, “If you ever eat at the Larson’s home, you’ll understand.”

  “If you did anything at my home, you’d understand,” Sally corrected. “Though I will say I dread mealtimes the most. There’s no getting away from them when they’re at the dinner table.”

  “I think I’ll skip the experience,” Jesse replied, his voice laced with humor.

  “I’d skip it, too, if I could.” Sally glanced around the property. “Where’s Mrs. Shaw?”

  “Resting.” And he decided he’d leave it at that.

  No sense in letting either woman know Fanny had spent the morning on his heels, pestering him about letting Laura come in to replace Elsie. He had ignored her, and it turned out this method worked. She quickly grew tired of being the only one talking, said her body ached, and then retreated to her one-room home. If his good luck prevailed, then she wouldn’t come out here while Sally and Laura were visiting.

  Sally gestured to the barn. “Mind if check out your stallion? Laura said he has the most beautiful brown coat she’s ever seen.”

  “Sure,” he said and waved toward the barn entrance.

  Sally thanked him and hurried into the barn.

  Jesse suspected Sally was making up the excuse in order to let him and Laura talk in private, and he appreciated it. He wanted to find out exactly what day they’d be marrying.

  “I never told you how much I appreciate all you do for Elliot,” he told Laura. “I didn’t even realize how much work you did until I had to spend an entire week without you.”

  “My parents refused to let me come out here,” Laura said. “Besides, I was working on the wedding dress. I know it’s not a real marriage, but it’s the only wedding I’m ever going to have and I want it to be special.”

  “It should be special. Sometimes late at night, I think back to my wedding day with Elsie. It’s one of the few memories that doesn’t depress me.”

  There had been so much hope and anticipation on the wedding day. Even given how much pain he’d endured after losing Elsie, he’d go through it all over again because of the good times they had shared together.

  He looked at Elliot, who, in many ways, reminded him of Elsie. As long as he had Elliot, a part of her would always be with him. And it was a comfort to know Laura would be good to him.

  “How much time do you need before you’re ready for the wedding?” he asked, his gaze returning to Laura.

  “I should be ready next week,” she replied. “I’m spending as much time as possible to get the dress ready. Given how everything’s going with my parents, I was wondering if we could have the wedding at the Larson’s place. If the weather’s nice, we can have it near the flowers Mrs. Larson planted.”

  Considering how furious her father had been when he stormed into his house, he couldn’t blame her for wanting to have the wedding at a place her parents didn’t know about. He’d rather not let the preacher know how many people didn’t want this marriage to happen.

  “Sure, we can do that,” he told her. And it was the least he could do for everything she’d done for him and Elliot over the past ten months. “What day and time should I be there?”

  “I talked to the preacher, and he said he’s free on either Wednesday or Thursday in the afternoon.”

  “How about Wednesday at one? That will give me enough time to make sure Elliot has something to eat for lunch.”

  “Wednesday will be good.”

  He breathed a sigh
of relief. Thankfully, he only had five more days to go.

  “Have you and Elliot had lunch yet?” Laura asked. “Sally and I thought we’d stay for a few hours. You know, to give you time to do your chores and so I can spend some time with Elliot?”

  “That would be great.” Really, she had no idea just how great that would be.

  “I’ll tell Sally. Then we’ll go to the kitchen and make something to eat. I’ll ring the dinner bell when lunch is ready.”

  “While you do that, I’ll catch up on some chores.”

  With a smile, she headed into the barn to get Sally.

  Now he knew exactly when he’d be getting married. Again, he found himself excited about it, but this was all for different reasons than the first time he took a wife.

  ***

  The next day, Laura asked Sally if she’d take her to Amanda’s, and Sally was more than happy to do it since it was the second day in a row she had a good excuse to be away from her brothers. But in addition to that, Sally confessed she’d been curious about how Amanda and Richard were doing.

  “We don’t get to see them as much as we’d like,” Sally told Laura as she pulled the buggy up to the apartment where Amanda and Richard lived. “Richard works long hours, and he even works weekends. It’s not all that different from the amount of time my father and brothers spend farming. Well, that is, when they’re not trying to get out of their chores. Joel is the worst of them all. I can’t count how many times he mysteriously disappeared or got Tom to chase after him. So really, Dave’s the only one who sticks to the chores.”

  “Except when he’s not competing with his brothers on who can fart and burp the loudest, right?” Laura joked.

  Sally giggled as she set the brake. “Right. And not only do they want to see who farts the loudest; they want to see who can make the fart that smells the worst.”

  Laura’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “That’s awful.”

  “That’s what I’ve been saying. Brothers are the worst. I hope I have a girl. I don’t think I could handle it if I have a boy.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Laura said as she climbed out of the buggy with Sally. “Elliot’s so sweet. I can’t imagine him any other way than how he is.”

  “He’s a baby. All babies are sweet. Just wait until he’s older and he thinks burps and farts are funny.”

  Even if he did, Laura didn’t think she’d mind it all that much, but she chose to keep quiet on the matter.

  The two went up the stairs of the apartment until they reached Richard and Amanda’s door.

  Sally knocked on it and clasped her hands behind her back. “When’s the last time you saw them?”

  “About a week ago. But Richard wasn’t here. I only saw Amanda. She was trying to figure out how much Richard could afford to spend for the rest of the month.”

  “I heard she took over the bookkeeping in his business.”

  “Yes, and she’s good at it. I don’t think I could manage all the paperwork she does. She has a gift for it.”

  “Richard said she’s smarter than most women, but I think he’s biased since he loves her.”

  “As long as he knows how to change his clothes and doesn’t burp or fart around her, we’ll forgive his bias.”

  Sally giggled.

  The door opened, and Richard asked, “What’s this about burping and farting?”

  Sally turned to him. “You know how your brothers are. We were just hoping you didn’t do those disgusting things when you’re with Amanda.” She shot him a pointed look. “Because if I find out you are, I’ll tell her about that time when you were eight and—”

  “I never do any of that with her,” Richard interrupted, giving her a look that insisted she stop at once.

  Laura’s eyebrows rose in interest. What could he have done at eight that would make his face turn bright red?

  “I love Amanda,” he continued. “I’d never act like Tom and Joel around her.”

  “And David,” Sally argued.

  “Dave doesn’t do that,” Richard replied.

  “He does, too.”

  Richard shook his head and gestured for them to enter the apartment. “Dave’s boring. He doesn’t do anything that’s even remotely human.”

  “Why doesn’t anyone believe me?” Sally sulked. “I’m telling you, he’s just as gross and disgusting as Tom and Joel.”

  “Alright. He does.” Though Richard agreed with her in his words, his tone indicated otherwise.

  Smiling at Sally in hopes of easing her frustration, Laura entered the apartment. At once, she saw Amanda at the small kitchen table, and Amanda was working over a ledger in front of her.

  “It seems every time I come over here, you’re working,” Laura told Amanda as she went over to her.

  Amanda looked up from the ledger and smiled. “It’s a labor of love.”

  Laura glanced at the columns and the numbers written in them. Amanda really enjoyed this kind of thing? Forget about Dave being boring. This was boring.

  “Amanda does a terrific job at handling the bookkeeping,” Richard said as he shut the door. He went over to them and rubbed Amanda’s shoulders. “Thanks to her, I can focus on building houses.”

  “That’s good,” Laura replied. “You two have the perfect marriage. One complements the other so well. Don’t you think they’re perfect together?” Laura asked, turning to face Sally, who sat on the couch close by.

  Sally waved her hand dismissively at Laura. “Richard’s been in love with Amanda ever since they were little. Eight, to be exact.” Sally wiggled her eyebrows at Laura.

  “Did you come over to talk about me, or is there something more interesting going on?” Richard asked, not hiding the irritation in his tone.

  Sally smirked at him. “Sometimes, you’re too much like Tom. I can see why Joel likes to annoy him so much.”

  When Richard groaned, Amanda put her pencil down and rose to her feet. “Would you like anything to drink?” she asked Laura and Sally. “I have some coffee already made.”

  “No thanks,” Sally said. “I can’t stand the taste.”

  “You can have some water,” Amanda replied.

  “Alright, I’ll have that,” Sally agreed.

  Amanda glanced at Laura, so Laura said, “Coffee will be fine.”

  “You really like coffee? All of you?” Sally asked as Amanda poured three cups.

  “It keeps us awake when you’re over,” Richard quipped. “Otherwise, we’d fall asleep.”

  She gasped. “I’m not boring.”

  “You and Dave have a lot in common,” he replied.

  Laura accepted the cup of coffee Amanda handed her and watched as Amanda gave Sally a glass of water. Sally and Amanda exchanged grins that told Laura even though Sally gave Richard a hard time, the two women were happy to be sisters-in-law.

  Richard grabbed his cup and sat at the kitchen chair. “Laura, did you know your father’s been by here every day for the past week, asking us where you are? We were beginning to think you disappeared.”

  “That, or eloped,” Amanda said. She sat on the couch and gestured for Laura to do the same.

  Laura did, settling between Amanda and Sally, and shook her head. “I didn’t elope. I’ve been staying with your in-laws while I finish getting the dress ready for my wedding.”

  “So that’s where you went,” Amanda replied. “We were wondering.”

  “What have you been telling my father?” Laura asked.

  “The truth. We had no idea where you were,” Amanda said.

  Laura bit her lower lip then asked, “What will you tell him next time he comes by?”

  Richard was the one who answered. “We’ll tell him it’s time he stopped asking questions. When you’re ready to talk to him, you will. In the meantime, it’s enough to know you’re safe.”

  Laura thought that was a good answer. “I like it, but I doubt it’ll do any good. When my parents are insistent about something, it’s hard to stop them.”

  �
��Are you still going to marry Jesse, or have you changed your mind?” Amanda asked.

  “Oh, I’m still marrying him,” Laura said. “Sally took me over to see him, and when Elliot saw me, he was so happy. He held his arms out to me and gave me the biggest smile I’ve ever seen on his face. I can’t think of any other child I want to be a mother to than him.”

  “You’re doing this because you want to be with Jesse, too, aren’t you?” Richard asked.

  Laura took a sip of the coffee. Why did everyone keep asking her that? “Well, sure. I mean, we get along fine. He’s Elliot’s father, and we want what’s best for Elliot.”

  Richard didn’t seem particularly pleased by her answer, but she didn’t know what else to tell him. It was the truth. Besides, hadn’t he married Amanda under the pretense of having a marriage of convenience?

  “You can set your mind at ease,” Sally told Richard. “Laura and Jesse get along very well. They’re good friends, just like you and Amanda were.”

  “Right,” Laura agreed. “There’s nothing wrong with marrying a friend, is there?”

  Amanda gave her an understanding smile. “No, there’s not. I don’t think Richard would argue with you on that. When is the wedding? Richard and I would like to be there.”

  “Would you really?” Laura asked.

  “Sure,” Amanda replied. “Why is that so surprising?”

  Laura shrugged. “I thought maybe you’d be busy with your work or maybe the wedding would be boring to you.”

  “Laura, you’re our friend. We want to be there to see you get married.”

  “You’re in luck,” Sally spoke up before Laura could respond. “She and Jesse will be marrying at a very familiar place.” She waited until she had Amanda and Richard’s attention before adding, “They’ll be getting married at my parents’ home!”

  “I was hoping for a nice church wedding,” Laura added. “But when my parents started making things difficult, I figured it’d be best to do a private ceremony. I’m afraid they’ll try to stop the wedding if they know. You won’t say anything to anyone, will you?” She glanced from Amanda to Richard.

  “No, we won’t,” Amanda promised. “Your secret is safe with us, and we’ll be happy to attend the wedding, won’t we, Richard?”