Читать книгу The Magic of Christmas - Carolyn Davidson - Страница 11

The rooster in his neighbor’s chicken coop sounded his usual early-morning call, and David pulled the quilt up over his head, unwilling to leave the warmth of the dream he had enjoyed for the past few minutes. A dark-haired girl, her form slender yet pleasingly curved, had been featured throughout the night hours, and his sleep had been broken, his eyes opening suddenly several times as he awoke from nocturnal thoughts that were far from dignified.

He sat up suddenly, recalling the heated dreams he’d indulged in, and his heart stuttered within him as he considered the woman in the next room. Even as he thought of her, he heard the movement beyond his bedroom wall as she arose, heard the small, soft sounds of a baby’s cry as Joshua awoke, announcing his hunger aloud.

His trousers were on the bedpost and David slid into them quickly, made haste to don his shoes and stockings, tucked his shirt into his pants hurriedly and went to the kitchen.

He found Marianne there before him, intent on heating milk for Joshua’s breakfast. She’d put on a small pan, warming an amount of milk from his pantry that would be sufficient to fill the baby bottle she was washing in the sink. He watched her from the doorway, noting her quick movements, the soft curves of her arms as she worked the pump handle, the sway of her hips as she turned back to the stove to rescue the milk, lest it be too hot for the baby.

“Good morning,” he said quietly, not wanting to startle her. Her head turned quickly to where he stood and a rosy flush covered her cheeks, as if she had been trying to be quiet and had still disturbed his sleep.

“I tried not to wake you,” she said, and he smiled, aware that he had read her aright.

“That’s all right. It was time for me to be up and about anyway. The rooster always sounds his alarm at dawn, and I find it a good time to begin my day.”

She poured the warmed milk into the bottle, careful not to spill any on the stove, and he watched her graceful movements, his breath coming quickly as he bent his appreciative gaze on her. The nipple was snapped into place and she turned her attention to him quickly.

“I’ll just go and get Joshua and feed him before I make your breakfast,” she said, heading for the spare room.

“Why not bring him out here and let me feed him and you can go ahead with breakfast. We’ll kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.”

Her smile was quick and ready, and he basked in the warmth of it. “I’ll wait here in the rocking chair.” And for the first time in months he sat in the rocker he’d bought for Laura during her pregnancy, pressing his foot against the floor in a slow fashion, allowing the chair to perform as it had been constructed to do.

Marianne came back from the bedroom, Joshua wrapped securely in his blanket, and collected the bottle from the table as she approached David. Her arms were extended to him and he took the small bundle from her, feeling an emotion akin to sorrow as he held the tiny mite against his chest. So might he have held the child Laura had borne months ago, and he caught his breath quickly, lest Marianne think he did not want to feed Joshua as he’d offered.

His eyes felt damp with tears that he refused to shed. Not that it was a matter of manliness or masculine pride, but he would not make her uncomfortable with his spasm of sorrow. His grief was no longer fresh, and he found that he spent hours without its presence in his heart. Now he had the opportunity of holding a child, though not his own, yet in a sense he felt a kinship to Joshua.

That he had found the child in his manger in the midst of the Nativity scene he’d constructed with his own hands was certainly part of his feeling of ownership of the child. Though children could not be possessed as might a dog or cow or some other belonging, he felt that Joshua was meant in some distinct way to be a part of his life. He had had a wife, never treating her as a possession, but as a partner in the wonders of marriage. They had been happy together, her cheerful demeanor giving him joy each day, her loving arms filling him with the satisfaction of a relationship that went beyond friendship, and hovered on the edge of love.

He’d made the mistake of not speaking his love aloud to Laura, assuming that she knew of his devotion to her, and had spent long hours of regret after her death, that he had never declared his heart aloud. Should he ever have the opportunity again to share such a relationship with a woman, he would not make the same mistake, he vowed silently.

And then he cuddled the baby against him, testing the warmth of the milk in the palm of his hand as he offered the nipple to Joshua’s rosy mouth. With gusto the baby attached himself to the rubber nipple and nursed. The span of eight hours or so had made him hungry and he clung tightly to the source of nourishment, almost choking on the abundance of milk he consumed.

Finally he released the nipple and his burp was loud and long, Marianne turning from the stove to laugh at him.

“He has no manners to speak of,” she said with a joyous light in her eyes. “I’ve never enjoyed anything so much in my life as I have tending him over the past weeks. He keeps my grief at bay somehow. Even though I miss my parents terribly, he manages to soothe my heartache.” Her words were soft, almost whispered, but David heard them clearly, knowing the truth in what she said, for she did not seem to have any sense of protecting herself from him. She was open and her heart was clearly involved in the child he held.

He watched her as she sliced bacon and placed it in his skillet, cracked eggs and whipped them to a froth with a turning fork, then poured the mixture into a second skillet. Bread was sliced and she slid it into the oven, lifting a stove lid to check the flames within. She was efficient, capable of tending to the making of a meal, and she’d obviously been well trained in her skills in the kitchen.

“Did you cook for your mother and father?” he asked, and she nodded, as if unable to speak of it aloud. He thought her shoulders trembled as she faced the stove and then she uttered words of regret, making him sorry he’d asked his question.

“I used to think it was a chore to cook sometimes, but my mother was not well when she carried Joshua and I had the full load of tending the kitchen and keeping the house clean. I thought if I were cooking for a family of my own it might have been more enjoyable, but I could foresee years ahead of helping with my parents and the child that came so late in their lives. They had not expected to have more children after I was born, for my mother bore several infants born too soon and they were not able to survive. There were four graves beyond our orchard, and she was not happy when she discovered that Joshua was on his way, for she was certain that he would share a similar fate with those who had come before.”

“How fortunate that he was a survivor,” David said softly, looking down at the sleeping child he held. The bottle was almost empty and the baby had bubbled a drop of milk from his mouth, making David yearn to bend low to kiss it away.

“My mother would have been heartbroken had he not lived. I like to think that she knew somehow that he was a healthy child even though she died in birthing him. It wasn’t the birth that caused her death, but the fever she had suffered with for two days. The doctor said it was a miracle that Joshua hadn’t succumbed to it himself, but he didn’t ever show signs of sickness, right from the first. I think he was meant to live.”

“I agree with you, Marianne. He has a purpose in life to fulfill, as do we all. Your mother’s may have been in bearing him and giving him life. We have no way of knowing what lies ahead for a child, only that we must do our best to raise him in such a way that he be a good man and a credit to his parents.”

“I’ll do my best to fulfill my mother’s dreams for him, David. She and my father were so looking forward to his birth, and it seemed I was bitter and angry with God for taking their lives just when it seemed happiness was in their future.”

“We don’t know why things happen the way they do, Marianne, but I’m sure Joshua will be a good man, with you to raise him and provide for him.”

She put two plates on the table, steam rising from the scrambled eggs, and then retrieved the bread from the oven, where it had toasted golden-brown. “Let me take Joshua now,” she said, moving toward the rocking chair, her arms outstretched. She took him carefully in her arms, bent to press her lips on his forehead and carried him to the bedroom.

Within moments she was back, taking her seat at the table, across from where David awaited her presence. He bent his head and spoke brief words of thanks for the food, asking a special thanksgiving for the joyous blessings of Christmas, and then lifted his eyes to meet her gaze.

“Eat while it’s hot, Marianne. We have things to tend to this morning. I haven’t found it in my heart to celebrate Christmas this year, but I find that there is reason to rejoice today. I’m going to speak to our mayor this morning. I don’t want to interrupt his holiday with his family, but I think he will understand the reason for my concern.”

“Will you stay here while I go and see Janet first?” she asked, needing to make arrangements for a place to sleep should Janet be agreeable to the plan she had concocted.

“Of course. Let Joshua have his morning nap while you go, and I’ll clean up the breakfast things.”

Her face lit with a smile, and he thought once again that she was a lovely girl. A woman really, for she was certainly of age to be married and have a child, at least almost out of her teens. And to that end he asked a question that had gnawed at his mind.

“How old are you, Marianne? Perhaps it’s none of my business, but I don’t want anyone to think I’m taking advantage of a young girl, asking you to work for me with little in the way of payment.”

“I’m eighteen,” she answered. “I might have been married and expecting a family of my own by now, but the young man who had been courting me contracted the fever and was buried just before my parents died.” Her eyes were dark with the additional sorrow of that loss and he felt a pang of pity as he considered the grief she must bear.

“I’m sorry for your pain. It may be that we can comfort each other in our grief, Marianne. For if my plans go aright, I’m going to ask my church board their opinion of a marriage between you and me. I think it would work out well for us, and I want you to know that I would not expect you to fill the role of a wife before you felt ready for it. Joshua would have a home and I would have the advantage of a wife in the parsonage, a helpmeet for me in my work. Can I have your permission to ask such a thing?”

She looked up at him, surprise alight in her face. “I hadn’t thought of such a thing, David. I’d only thought of working here and having a chance to give Joshua a good life, with enough food and more clothing as he grows. The thought of marriage hadn’t entered my head.”

“I realize that,” he told her, “but I spent a lot of hours last night trying to find a solution to your problems. This seems to be the answer for both of us. I’d hoped you might be agreeable.”

Marianne was quiet for a few moments as if she must assimilate all he’d said. Her head was bowed as she considered David’s words. She’d not thought of marriage, for having Joshua to care for made her somewhat of a burden for a young man just starting out in his life. Whereas David had been married, knew the ups and downs connected with a relationship with a woman and, much to her surprise, he was willing to take her on, along with her brother, and make a home for her here in the parsonage. She felt a thrill of delight that such a man would be interested in her, that he found her attractive, for surely he would not marry a woman who did not appeal to him.

She donned her cloak, watching as David cleared off the table and rinsed the plates in the sink. He was obviously used to washing up after a meal and she could not help but notice his skills as he wiped off the table, put the dishes into the pan and readied them for washing. He would be a husband to be proud of, she decided, hoping that his plan might bear fruit, that their marriage might be welcome to the townspeople who supported his church and paid his salary.

“I’ll be back shortly, once I talk to Janet,” she told him, opening the back door and stepping onto the porch.

“Joshua will sleep for an hour or two—at least he usually does in the morning after he eats. I’ll give him a bath when he awakens and do his washing. I hope you won’t mind if I use the line behind the stove to dry things on.”

“You are welcome to do as you please while you’re with me, Marianne. I enjoy your company, and having Joshua here is a bonus for me. I feel attached to him already. I hope you’ll truly consider what I’ve asked of you. I’ve only proposed once before, when I asked Laura to be my wife, so I probably didn’t do a very good job of it, but I want you to know that it is the desire of my heart to take care of you and Joshua and give you a home where you’ll be safe and happy. I think I should make it clear that you may have your own bedroom, for I have no intention of pushing you into an intimate relationship. If and when you are ready to truly be a wife, I’ll expect you to let me know, for I’m more interested right now in getting to know you better and finding out how we get on together.”

She smiled, standing in the open doorway. “That’s quite a speech, David. You’ve made me an offer I can hardly refuse. I hope you won’t find any dispute to your proposal from the board of your church, for this will be the answer to my prayers, if all goes as you have planned.”

She blushed as his scrutiny swept her from head to toe, and his smile was approving as he walked toward her. His hands rested on her shoulders and he bent to her, pressing his lips against her forehead.

“Talk to Janet about it if you like, Marianne. See if she gives her approval. I honestly think she will, for she is a sensible lady, one who will see the obvious advantages for both of us.” He held her apart from him and his smile was warm, his lips curved in a look of pure happiness. “Merry Christmas, my dear. I hope this day will be a happy one for both of us.”

Marianne walked quickly to the house next to the general store, rapping once on the door and waiting as she heard footsteps approaching, the sound vibrating on the porch. Janet opened the door wide and welcomed her inside.

“Merry Christmas, Marianne. I wondered what had happened to you last night. I left the store unlocked in case you wanted to sleep there, but I noticed this morning when I went over to put wood in the stove that you hadn’t been there.”

“I slept at the parsonage,” Marianne admitted quietly. “David felt it would be better for Joshua to be in a warm house where there was everything available to tend to him. He’s sleeping now in the spare bedroom. And that was where I spent the night, Janet. I hope you don’t think there was anything out of order going on last night. David gave me a place to stay and I got up and made his breakfast.”

She slid her cloak from her shoulders and sat in the chair Janet offered, nodding her head as she offered Marianne a cup of tea, a gift received with a grin.

“Thank you. David prefers coffee apparently, and I didn’t ask if he had any tea. My mama used to always have a cup for breakfast or in the middle of the morning. I miss sitting at the table with her and talking of what we would do during the day and what work needed to be done.”

“What have you and Mr. McDermott spoken of, Marianne? I think from the look on your face that you have something to talk over with me. Am I wrong?” Janet sat across the table, lifted her teacup and sipped at the warm brew, waiting till Marianne should decide to speak.

“He wants to marry me,” she said softly. “He asked if I would live there and keep house for him and cook and do the laundry and all that is entailed in being a wife.”

“All?” Janet asked quietly, her brow rising as she posed the query.

“All but the sleeping in his bedroom part,” Marianne said, feeling awkward as she explained the circumstances David had suggested. “He said he would not expect that of me, for we barely know each other, having met but yesterday. I think he’s willing to give me as much time as I need to become accustomed to his company before he makes a change in our relationship.”

“And how do you feel about it?” Janet asked, as if she were feeling her way, trying to negotiate a rocky path. “Would you be comfortable living in the parsonage and answering to the ladies in town, for surely you know they will watch you like a hawk.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Marianne told her. “I suppose they feel somewhat protective of David, given the circumstances of his wife’s death and the loss of his child.”

“It could well be the best thing that could happen for both of you,” Janet said slowly, as if her mind must catch up to her words. “I assume you’ve had a good upbringing, Marianne, and your parents were no doubt strict with you. Have you had a gentleman friend in your life before this?”

“A young man in our neighborhood wanted to court me a couple of years ago and my father told him he could come calling so long as he didn’t see me alone, without a chaperone. He talked about marriage for the past few months, and I had just about agreed to the idea, for he was a good man, with good prospects.”

Janet eyed her, obviously noting the tears that threatened to fall as she spoke. “What happened? Did you change your mind?”

“No. He came down with the fever and died just before my parents became ill. A lot of the folks in our part of the county fell ill and many of them didn’t make it. There are a lot of homes without mothers, some without a breadwinner, and the winter looks to be a sad one for several families who are grieving for loved ones.”

“Is that why you left home with Joshua?”

“My neighbor said her sister lived here in town and I might be able to stay with her while I found work. You know how that turned out, once her husband got wind of the idea. I don’t think my old neighbor is aware of the situation in her sister’s home.”

“Well, you didn’t need that sort of problem anyway,” Janet said bluntly. “What you’ve been offered is far and away the better choice for you.”

“David said he’s going to speak with the mayor today, even though it’s Christmas. He’s anxious to get someone else’s approval of his proposal.”

“The mayor is head of the church board, and if he gives his okay, David has clear sailing,” Janet said with a grin.

“I’ll bet he’s anxious to get things in motion. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re not a married lady by tomorrow.”

Marianne almost choked on her tea. “So soon? Do you really think he’ll want to do things that quickly?”

“He can’t keep you in his house without marrying you, Marianne. You’re old enough to know folks will talk if such a thing were to be going on. It’s better for you and David both if you speak your vows right away.”

Marianne stood, gathering her cloak up from the chair and tossing it over her shoulders. “I think maybe I’d better get back to the parsonage and let David do his business with the mayor, hadn’t I?”

Janet smiled, her eyes beaming with anticipation. “I can’t wait till tomorrow. Every lady in town will be in the store before the day is over, wondering what is going on. You’ll have their eyes glued on you, I’ll guarantee it.”

Marianne felt a flush creep up her cheeks. “I don’t know if I’m looking forward to that. I’d thought maybe we could keep it very quiet if we decided to do this, sort of just make it a private thing.”

“Not a chance,” Janet said with a hoot of laughter.

“Everyone in town will be wanting to give you a pounding.”

“A pounding?” Marianne’s eyes widened as she considered the word, wondering at its meaning.

“A pounding is where each family brings a pound of this or that to the happy couple’s home. A pound of coffee, or flour or maybe sugar or butter. Quite often it’s more than just a pound, for folks think highly of Mr. McDermott and they’ll want to welcome you into the parsonage as his wife in fine style.”

David left the house as soon as Marianne returned, heading for the mayor’s home, leaving Marianne with a smile, and his expression speaking of his pleasure at the circumstances. He obviously was pleased at the idea of gaining a wife so readily, Marianne decided. It was likely that he was weary of taking care of himself, although the parsonage did not show neglect in any way. He apparently had taken good care of his home, keeping it clean and caring for his belongings.

She spent an hour preparing dinner, first finding a piece of smoked pork in the pantry, then placing it in a baking pan, sliding it into the oven and deciding on a kettle of green beans and potatoes to go with it. Most men enjoyed their big meal of the day at noontime—at least her father had, and her mother had said it was the usual circumstance to have a large meal at noon, then just soup or some such thing for supper later on in the day.

She heard Joshua’s cry as he awakened and she made haste to wash her hands and set a pan of warm water on the table for his bath, then gathered him up from the bed and stripped him of his clothing so that she could give him a fresh start. He was a pleasure to tend, contented to allow her to wash his head, using a cloth to wipe his arms and legs and then his back. He shivered as she finished the task, and she wrapped him in a clean towel she’d found in David’s bedroom. His small head smelled sweet, she thought, just as an infant should, and it was with joy that she diapered him and found the last clean gown for him to wear.

The laundry must be done soon, for he was almost out of diapers, having only just a few more than a dozen to his name. A washtub on the porch offered her a place to soak his clothing, and she put it in front of the stove, half filling it with warm water from the reservoir.

His bottle ready, she held him in her arms in the rocking chair and sang to him as he ate his meal, his hands clutching at her fingers, his nose nuzzling her as he searched out the nipple she’d carefully washed and readied for his use.

He was warm and soft and she felt an overwhelming love for the mite as she rocked him, holding him close, humming a lullaby she’d heard her mother sing as she worked around the house, one she remembered hearing as a child.

When David returned from his jaunt across town, she had just put Joshua down on the bed, knowing that he would sleep again for at least two hours. He was a good baby, her former neighbor had said, quickly accustoming himself to the schedule of eating and sleeping. Marianne had not spent much time with children up until this point in her life, but tending to her brother was a chore she accepted as her due.

David had good news. “The mayor seems to think it would be a good idea for us to be married. He said every man needs a wife, and a preacher especially so. The parsonage is usually the place where people come with their problems, and it is better if there is a true family living there. I understand what he was saying, for it isn’t a good idea for a man of the church not to have a wife of his own. He said I’ve been the object of several young ladies’ attention of late, and I suspect he is right. For I feel sometimes like I’m on display.”

Marianne nodded at his words. “What do you think we should do?” she asked.

“Did Janet have any ideas?” David wanted to know. “I thought she might speak her mind to you.” Marianne nodded, looking down at her hands, clenched tightly in her lap. “She thinks it’s a good idea, our getting married. I just don’t want you to jump into something you may be sorry for later on. What if you find that you don’t like me well enough to share your life with me?”

The expression on David’s face was almost comical, for he’d apparently not thought of that possibility. “I see no reason why we couldn’t make a good marriage. You’re a woman who would appeal to any man with eyes in his head, and I’m not immune to the allure you offer.”

“Me?” She was stunned by his words. “I didn’t think you had looked at me that way, David.”

“You don’t know much about men, do you?” At the quick shake of her head, he continued, his voice soft, his gaze upon her seeming as warm as a spring breeze. His words were genuine, spoken from his heart, and he felt the pace of that organ in his chest vibrating in a mysterious rhythm. “You are slender and most appealing, Marianne, with curves that speak of feminine form and beauty. Your eyes are lovely, your hair looks like pure silk. It makes my hands itch to touch it and run it through my fingers. Altogether you are a woman any man would be proud to marry. Best of all, your demeanor is modest, your upbringing obviously that of a girl with a good background. I’ll bet your folks were strict with you, weren’t they? I doubt they allowed you to be alone with any young men, did they?”

He halted, watching her with a warmth in his eyes that made her wonder at the many charms he had described, made her stomach swim in a delightful manner. She shook her head in bewilderment. “No one has ever spoken to me this way before. I don’t know what to think, David. I look in my mirror every morning when I wash my face and brush my hair, and I swear to you I don’t see the woman you have described.”

“Perhaps I look with the eyes of a man who is attracted to you, Marianne. Maybe my viewpoint is so different than yours because it is one of masculine interest. Know that I am being as honest with you as I know how. I would never tell you an untruth or exaggerate my feelings. You are a tempting woman and I would find it no hardship to put my ring on your finger and claim you as my wife.”