September, a year later
Annie watched as her husband chased the little girl around the yard until he caught her. Jacob lifted the toddler high, and she giggled. He set her down, and she stumbled away from him laughing. Annie chuckled as she watched Jacob give chase and capture her all over again, much to the child’s delight.
“You’re going to tire her out before lunch,” Annie called out.
“You’ll eat before you nap, won’t ya, Rachel?” Jacob asked the little girl. He bent down as if to hear the child’s whisper. “She said she’ll eat and then sleep,” he assured his wife.
“But Joan will be coming for her soon.” Annie cradled her large belly as she rose from a wooden chair out on the lawn behind their new home. They had lived in the schoolhouse until their house was finished. “She’ll expect our niece to have eaten.” Her sister and her husband had moved back to Lancaster County, much to the family’s delight.
Jacob pouted. Annie laughed as she waddled in his direction. He stood still, his expression warming as he watched her approach. “You look more beautiful every day,” he murmured.
Annie beamed at him. “I grow bigger every day.”
“Ja,” Jacob agreed, “but I couldn’t be happier.” He placed a hand on her belly. “He moved!” he exclaimed with delight.
She chuckled. “Thank the Lord,” she said.
“You’ve made me happy, Annie, happier than I could have ever imagined.” He frowned suddenly as he looked for his niece. When he found her, he grinned and pointed. “I think Rachel decided to take her nap before lunch.”
Following his direction, Annie saw her little niece curled up on the grass with her eyes closed. “So she did.” She smiled affectionately at Jacob. “Do you want to carry her inside or should I?”
He raised his eyebrows. “Not in your condition.”
Amused, she watched him tenderly pick up their niece. Jacob had confided that he wanted as many children as she. This wasn’t the time, she decided, to remind him that there would be occasions when she’d be large with child, with a little one on her hip. Jacob, my wonderful husband, will be a gut vadder. He had made her world complete.
Inside the house, he placed the little girl on their bed. He rose and then met her gaze. “Annie?”
“I love you, Jacob. I’ll love you forever.”
His golden eyes glowed as he slipped his arms around her. “I love you, Annie, and I will love you beyond my last breath.”
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Keep reading for an excerpt from THE COWBOY’S FOREVER FAMILY by Deb Kastner.