Читать книгу His Chosen Bride - Rhonda Gibson - Страница 12

Chapter Four

Millie felt sorry for him. She’d thought her ma was bossy, but Ma would have had a hard time keeping up with Bonnie Westland tonight. At dinner, Bonnie had positioned herself at one end of the table and Levi at the other. She’d made sure everyone could see and hear her handsome son. She’d told each of them where to sit and then the questions began. Fortunately for Millie, Bonnie had paid very little attention to her.

The mail-order brides had answered Bonnie’s questions, and Millie had learned a lot about each of them.

Susanna Marsh had worn her widowhood like a badge of honor. She’d boasted of being an excellent wife and housekeeper, and claimed she specialized in making clothes for herself, her husband and the needy.

Anna Mae Leland had spoken quietly. She’d confessed she loved to teach and really would like to live in town.

At that point, Hannah had leaned over and whispered in Millie’s ear, “That’s why I’m having such a hard time getting her to take over the ranch school.” Millie realized quickly that nothing passed Anna Mae’s attention. Anna Mae raised a fine brown eyebrow in their direction as if to tell them whispering in public was rude.

Emily Rodgers had explained that she was the oldest of twelve and loved to cook and bake. She’d grown up on a small farm in Kansas, enjoyed gardening and hoped to find a job in town.

Millie had expected to be questioned in the same manner, but instead, Bonnie had complimented her on the pie she’d brought and then proceeded to tell Levi that Emily’s cinnamon buns were much better. Millie’s only consolation had been that Beth had baked the pie, not her. Of course, she didn’t say that. Millie was wise enough to simply smile and let the conversation flow right over her.

When Bonnie had directed her clear green eyes straight at Levi, Millie, who had been seated the farthest away from him, had leaned forward slightly in her chair. She’d wondered what his mother would expect to happen next. It hadn’t taken Bonnie long to demand Levi tell the ladies a little about himself.

The mail-order brides had sat up straighter in their chairs. Daniel had scoffed and Hannah had grinned. Looking back on it now, she could understand why Levi’s ears had turned bright pink.

Levi had laid his fork down, cleared his throat twice, and then proceeded to tell them that he placed God above all else.

From the corner of her eye, Millie had seen the frown that Susanna had hurried to mask. Millie wondered if it was because Susanna expected to be first in her husband’s life or did she have something against God or Christians? Having been raised in church, Millie figured the other woman simply wanted to come first in her future husband’s life.

He’d then told them that he owned several businesses in town that were run by other people. Levi’s face had relaxed and a smile had touched his lips as he’d told them about the furniture business that he ran. He’d leaned forward and shared that right now he was the only builder but someday, he might take on a partner because business was so good. As if he’d realized everyone was staring at him, Levi had concluded with saying that should he choose a bride, then she’d have to be willing to live in town. Both Anna Mae and Emily seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

Hannah had saved Levi from having to answer any further questions by saying she had an announcement to make. She and Daniel had stood up and turned to face Bonnie. “Daniel and I are going to have a baby, probably around the last of September or the first of October.” Her brilliant smile warmed Millie’s heart.

Everyone had congratulated the happy couple, and Millie hadn’t missed the subtle glances the brides had given to Levi. It was no wonder that soon afterward Levi had announced it was time to return to town.

Millie had agreed and covered a yawn proving she was tired from her long day. Now, sitting in silence beside him, she wanted to offer some form of comfort, but what?

Levi stopped the wagon in front of the boardinghouse and came around to help her down. His hands felt warm and strong around her waist. “Thank you for taking me with you this evening,” she offered as her feet touched the ground.

He looked down at her, and a gentle smile covered his lips. “I noticed you didn’t say, ‘I enjoyed myself.’”

She liked the way a teasing light lit his eyes. “No, I can’t say I enjoyed most of it. Although, it was kind of fun watching you skitter around those brides like they were hot coals popping out of the fireplace.”

Levi’s dimples flashed as he laughed. “My favorite part of the evening was when you told my mother that once she gets to know you, she will like you. I’ve never seen her stumped like that before in my life.”

Millie stepped out of his hands. “Yeah, it was kind of rude of me to be that forward, and I noticed she didn’t have much to say to me after that. Maybe I should apologize.”

“Don’t you dare. I think she might have met her match in you.” He continued to stare at her and his face sobered. “If you change your mind about getting married, let me know. I’m in the market for a wife, ya know?”

Had he just proposed to her? Millie took a step away from him and clasped the gate handle. “I know, and that’s about the saddest proposal I have ever heard. Nonetheless, I’m afraid I’ll have to pass it up. I’m going to continue with my plans of opening an art gallery in Granite someday.” Millie hoped to lighten the mood and winked at him. “Ya know—” she paused for effect “—you have three prospective brides waiting for you out on the Westland ranch.”

He groaned. “Yeah, I know. But seeing as you’re already in town, it will be easier to court you.” Levi pulled himself back up onto the wagon and winked down at her before turning the wagon around and heading back along the street.

Millie realized her jaw hung open and she snapped it shut. Had he insinuated he planned to court her? The gate creaked as she opened it. A yawn escaped as she made her way into the house and up to her room. No, surely he was simply teasing her.

She used the key to open her room. It was a nice space with tan walls. The window faced out over the front porch. She pushed back lavender-colored curtains and cracked it open. Crickets and locus sang on the soft evening air.

Tiredness enveloped her like an old friend. Millie changed out of her dress and into her nightgown. She pulled the quilt back on her bed and then blew out the lamp. The cool sheets welcomed her like dew on a crisp autumn morning.

And yet, sleep eluded Millie. She turned over and punched the pillow. Levi Westland was not going to try and court her, was he? Once more, she told herself they’d only been casting about playful banter.

Still, with three beautiful women at the ranch ready to marry him, why had Levi suggested she marry him? So what if she was already in town? That was no reason to focus on her. Especially since she’d already told him that she’d changed her mind about marriage.

Millie grew irritated from both lack of sleep and her wayward thoughts. If he thought he could woo or bully her into a marriage with him, Levi Westland had another think coming.

* * *

The next morning dawned bright and early. Millie hadn’t slept well and felt as prickly as a hedgehog. She dressed in her Sunday best and fixed her hair before heading downstairs to meet the rest of the boarders and to have breakfast. Beth had shown her around the day before so she knew exactly where to go in the big house.

Millie entered the dining room with a smile plastered on her face that she prayed looked believable. Beth looked up from cutting a young boy’s sausage. Levi had mentioned the evening before that Beth had a six-year-old son named Mark.

Mark smiled up at her, and she saw that he’d lost his front tooth. The boy seemed big for his age. Her papa would say the lad was built like a lumberman. She genuinely smiled at the thought of her papa.

“Good morning, Millie. I pray you slept well last night.”

She didn’t want to lie to her hostess so simply said, “Good morning, how are you today?” Millie averted her eyes from the two curious people who sat at the table.

The scents of bacon, eggs and hot biscuits filled the room.

A buffet had been set up against the far wall. It hadn’t been there the day before, and Millie wondered if it was something that Beth did every Sunday morning. She’d check, and if so, Millie decided to get up earlier to help her next Sunday.

“Very well. Go ahead and help yourself to breakfast. We aren’t formal here.” Beth waved toward the table lined with food.

Millie did as she was asked. The food looked and smelled wonderful. Once more, she thanked the Lord for the new job and the benefits it had to offer. She chose a little of everything on the table. Last night, she’d picked at her food; this morning, she intended to enjoy it. A genuine smile touched her lips; maybe today she wouldn’t have to deal with any of the Westlands and could just take pleasure in her first Sunday in Granite.

Millie poured herself a cup of coffee before picking up her plate and turning back to face the table. The rich aroma of the hot beverage soothed some of the prickles she’d been feeling.

There were four people present: Beth, Mark, an older woman who looked to be about seventy and a man with brown hair and soft brown eyes. Thanks to the coffee and their welcoming faces, Millie felt as if she could relax.

“Please, sit by me. I am so anxious to get to know you,” the gray-haired woman invited. Her steely blue eyes twinkled up at Millie.

How could she refuse such a kind offer? “Thank you.” Millie pulled out the chair beside the woman and sat.

“My name is Mrs. Englebright. I believe your room is right next to mine.” She picked up her cup and took a sip. When she set it back down, Millie noted that the older woman had added either cream or milk to the coffee.

“I’m Millie Hamilton.” She reached for the butter. Millie thought the woman already knew who she was, but she didn’t know what else to say.

Beth smiled about the table. She nodded to the gentleman, who sat up a little taller in his seat.

He cleared his throat and then announced, “Miss Hamilton, my name is Gerald Lupin. I work for the newspaper office. We will be printing our first issue one day next week.” He returned to his eggs.

As Millie buttered her biscuit, she replied, “It’s nice to meet you all. I didn’t know Granite had a newspaper office, Mr. Lupin.” She picked up a napkin and placed it in her lap.

He laid his fork down and then wiped his mouth before speaking. “We’ve been here about a month, but until recently didn’t have all the equipment we needed to print our paper.” Mr. Lupin tore his biscuit in half and reached for a small jar of honey.

Millie wondered who “we” and “our” were but didn’t ask. She was afraid she might disturb Mr. Lupin with further questions. He seemed a little preoccupied with his meal. She looked down the table at Beth, who simply shrugged.

“Sorry I’m late,” Levi Westland said as he entered the room. His hair was damp and he wore a crisp white shirt with dark trousers and black boots. “I wanted to finish Mrs. Lewis’s table before we went to church. You know she will be asking me about it this morning after services. It’ll be nice to tell her it’s done.” Levi continued on to the buffet and began filling his plate up with food.

Millie thought she was going to choke on her bread. What was he doing here? Was he stalking her? Or did he normally eat his meals at Beth’s Boardinghouse? But Beth had told her the day before that the house wasn’t open to customers on Sunday, only residents.

“You are fine,” Beth said as she wiped jelly off Mark’s mouth.

Levi scooted into the spot across from Millie, between Mark and Mr. Lupin. “I take it introductions have been made.”

It was Mark who answered around a mouthful of eggs. “Yep, they been talkin’ and talkin’. Miss Millie hasn’t even had her first bite of Ma’s wonderful biscuits yet.” The six-year-old grinned up at Levi.

“Thank you, Mark, for that nice compliment but don’t talk with your mouth full.” Beth beamed.

The little boy swallowed. “Yes, Ma.”

Levi looked across at her. “You have to try them, Millie. They are very good.”

Her hackles rose. There he went, telling her what to do again. Millie offered him a sweet smile and said, “All right, but do you think Beth’s rolls will be as tasty as Emily’s cinnamon buns?” She was rewarded with Levi’s sudden choking cough.

* * *

Levi sloshed coffee down his throat to wash down the suddenly dry biscuit. Millie took a dainty bite of hers, looking as innocent as the day she was born. Why did she have to bring up the mail-order bride?

Mark asked, “Who’s Emily?”

“She’s one of the mail-order brides we met last night.” Millie smiled sweetly at Gerald Lupin.

Did she hope Gerald would think he had a front-page story and start asking questions? Wouldn’t that set the little town of Granite into a tizzy? He could see the headlines now: Mail-Order Brides Descend On Granite, Texas, Thanks to the Westland Family. Levi wiped his mouth off and proceeded to eat his breakfast.

Mark asked, “What’s a mail-order bride?”

Levi wanted to groan and crawl away at the same time.

He was shocked when Gerald answered, “Mark, a mail-order bride is a woman who answers an advertisement in a newspaper, magazine or catalog. The ad is usually placed by a man who is looking for a wife or a bride. It’s a fairly common practice in some places.” As if speaking to himself he added, “I wonder if we should consider offering that kind of ad in our paper.”

“Oh.” The little boy sounded as if he had more questions.

Gerald placed his napkin on the table and stood. “If everyone will excuse me, I need to get ready for church.”

Beth picked up her plate and Mark’s. “We need to finish getting ready, too, son.”

Thankfully, Mark hurried after his mother with no further mention of mail-order brides. Levi sighed and tucked into his eggs.

Mrs. Englebright pushed her almost-empty plate back. “How many brides were there?” She directed her gaze to Millie.

Millie lowered her roll. “There were three.”

“And they all came to marry our Levi?”

Levi felt her gaze upon him but decided to ignore both Mrs. Englebright and the heat he felt burning in his ears.

He heard the laughter in Millie’s voice. “They sure did. I think they are smitten with him.” She was really enjoying his discomfort. What could he do to stop her?

The question filled his mind as Mrs. Englebright continued with questions of her own. “And what did you think of the young ladies, Millie?”

Millie picked up her coffee and blew on it. “They seemed nice enough. I’m sure whichever one Levi chooses he’ll be happy with.”

“You’re probably right. After the war, women from my hometown were answering those ads. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. When Harvey didn’t come home and I heard he’d died in battle, I thought about it, but, well, I wasn’t ready.” She paused as if deep in thought and then turned a brilliant smile on the both of them. “But most of them gals that did get new husbands were happier than seasoned punch. I asked them to write me after they were married and they did. It was nice hearing about the lives they’d begun.”

Levi decided to speak up and maybe turn the teasing card around to Millie. “They were all very nice, but I think I’ve set my cap on marrying Miss Millie. After all, she was the first mail-order bride to answer my advertisement. Isn’t that right, Millie?” He sat back and crossed his arms, daring her to deny it.

“Yes, but as I’ve already told you, I’ve changed my mind.” Millie’s cheeks turned pink and her eyes studied the plate full of food in front of her.

Mrs. Englebright chuckled as she pushed out of her chair. “I think I’ll go freshen up some before church, too.”

Levi watched her leave. She was a sweet woman, and he was glad her kids had set her up here at the boardinghouse. He turned his gaze to Millie.

She’d quietly left the table and taken her plate and Mrs. Englebright’s with her to the washtub.

He stuffed the rest of his biscuit into his mouth and grabbed up the remaining dirty dishes on the table. It surprised him when she rolled up her sleeves to do the dishes.

“You don’t have to do those. Beth usually gets to them when she does the lunch dishes.” Levi set the plates into the hot water.

Millie offered him a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Why does Beth always have to do them?”

She had a point. Levi rolled his sleeves up, too, and moved to the washtub. He could tell he’d pushed too far with his teasing. Millie released pent-up air that drifted across the hairs of his arms.

“If you insist on helping, please let me wash and you dry. I have no idea where these go.” She handed him a tea towel.

Levi scooted to the side, and she moved into his spot in front of the dishpan. He took the first plate that she’d washed and dried it. “I’m sorry if I embarrassed you with Mrs. Englebright.”

“Are you?” There was a slight twinge of doubt in her voice.

Was he? Levi didn’t like the fact that he’d upset her. He’d simply been trying to take the attention off himself and she had been the most convenient person in the room to direct it to. “Yes.”

She bobbed her head once. “Then thank you for that.”

Levi took the dishes as she passed them to him. When they finished, they had a nice stack piled on the sideboard and he felt a sense of accomplishment. How many Sundays had Beth come home to dirty dishes? Too many. He decided to change the way things were done on Sundays, and he had Millie to thank for that.

Millie kept quiet as they worked. Was she still angry with him? Levi decided to find out. “As soon as I toss out this water and put away the dishes, how would you like to sit with me on the front porch while we wait for the others?”

Her pretty blue eyes searched his. He could see questions within their depths and couldn’t help but wonder what she was thinking. She pushed a stray curl off her forehead and nodded. “All right. I’ll even help you put the food away, but when we get out there, I have a few questions for you, Mr. Westland.”

She scooped up two platters and headed toward the kitchen. Dread filled Levi. She’d called him Mr. Westland in the same tone that his mother used when she said his full name. What new questions did she have for him now? Dread crept up his spine and into his hairline.