Chapter 6
There was just polite conversation at breakfast this morning. Tate sat in his borrowed high chair, babbling and playing with the small pieces of toast and jelly that was on the high chair’s tray.
The fluffy scrambled eggs, crisp bacon and light pancakes Millie made for breakfast was fit for a king, let alone a marshal. And how could she make coffee taste so good?
Last night Adam had skipped coming home for supper. Instead, he ate at the café and spent the evening making the rounds about town—several times. When he came home to a quiet, dark house, the smell of baked pies almost made him light a lamp and find a fork. But he didn’t want Millie to know he was in the kitchen, so he quietly went upstairs.
He couldn’t sit across the table from her last night after almost walking in on her bath yesterday afternoon. His cheeks still reddened at the thought. Luckily she had just closed her eyes to dunk her hair in the tub so she didn’t know he was staring at her fine body through the door’s window. Oh gosh, that swirl of wavy, red hair on her head…Adam felt like he needed to take off his hat and fan his face—but he couldn’t—because he was carrying a cloth-covered pie tin in each hand for the meal after the wedding ceremony. He had to get that picture out of his head because he couldn’t sleep last night, and she was living in his home, even though it was in the downstairs bedroom.
They were walking the three blocks to church now and he glanced sideways as Millie took another deep breath. Adam didn’t blame the woman for being nervous. He’d had time to think about her situation and realize how overwhelming the loss of Sam and his home must be for Millie. And to have lost a sister the week before? Adam squeezed his eyes shut thinking what if his sister Sarah had died a few days ago. He really was sorry for their first meeting and how he reacted. Probably why he let his mother move her and the kid into his house.
Adam hadn’t picked up the boy since their “naked dash home” as his sister called it, but Tate was always watching, almost judging Adam for his actions. At least the boy wasn’t screaming his head off anymore. Not a peep out of him overnight until breakfast, and now his mouth was sucking his thumb like he hadn’t eaten anything yet today.
“Clear Creek’s citizens are the good decent sort, and you’ll do fine meeting them,” Adam announced, trying to calm Millie’s nerves.
“I’m sure they are. It’s just that…everything is different here compared to Chicago. The town is out in the open and without a tree in sight to hide behind—or get any shade,” she added quickly. “You can easily see the end of Clear Creek from any street, and then it’s nothing…”
“Nothing but beautiful, open grass and blue sky to me. I like the vast openness, nothing to capture me and hold me down.”
Millie kept strolling, looking down the street to the open prairie beyond. “I must confess I’ve never been outside the city limits of Chicago until this trip. The train ride across the open sections of the country was intimidating to me, save for the fact that I was enclosed in the safety of the train car.”
Adam turned to Millie and almost stopped with a thought. “But you were going to live out in the country with Sam. You think being in a town looking out is different…” He was going to say intimidating because that’s what Adam was afraid the open countryside was to Millie.
“I know,” Millie said looking down at the dirt street. “I just…I just was intent on escaping the poverty, looking for a family to love, not thinking of the different type of land or house I’d be living in,” she ended softly.
“Would you like to see Sam’s house, or would it be too painful? I ask that because the question is going to come up with the Hamners owning in now.”
Adam could see Millie rubbing her thumb on the wedding band now circling her ring finger as she thought about his question. “Yes, I think I need to see it, because of all the ‘what ifs’ that continue to run through my head. Do you think they’ll mind?”
“Give the newlyweds a few days to settle in, and then I’m sure Rania would love to have you visit.” Adam wanted to give Millie’s shoulders a hug for reassurance, and he couldn’t help thinking about the creamy shoulders he saw during her bath. Jeepers, he had to clean out his mind. Good thing they were going to church.
Millie stopped and stared. “Is there a woman, and a bunch of boys running toward us?”
“Oh, brace yourself. Mrs. Reagan just heard you’re Irish.”
***
Millie took a deep breath, then another before taking the first step down the church aisle. Kaitlyn Reagan’s joyful excitement of meeting her and Tate caused them to be late arriving to church. The preacher’s wife just smiled at her husband’s look of “I’m waiting for you to start the service” as she herded her family into the front left pew in front of the simple pulpit.
Adam pointed to his family sitting on the right side of the aisle, also in the front pew. There were two seats left on the center end—for them, she guessed. Millie didn’t know if the Wilersons always sat in the front of the church, or they were doing so this morning because of today’s wedding.
It was a simple wooden rectangle church, unpainted, with plain windows instead of stained-glass. So different from the stone cathedral in Chicago where she used to worship. Millie hurried down the aisle, shifting Tate to her left hip so she could grab the pew back. She curtsied before entering the pew, and then made the sign of the cross on her chest when seated.
When Millie opened her eyes, she was taken aback by the look of confusion in Adam’s face as he slowly eased into the pew beside her. Oh gracious, she wasn’t in a Catholic church, but automatically did the ritual she’d done since a child. From now on she would have to do the act in her mind only instead of physically.
She could feel the whole congregation’s eyes on her back as she settled Tate in her lap. Cate sat on her right and patted Millie’s arm in reassurance so Millie tried to calm her red face and concentrate on the pastor beginning the service.
“I want to welcome everyone to our service. Are there any guests today?”
Millie’s eyes widened when she realized Pastor Reagan was looking directly at her. Cate stood, and touched Millie’s elbow, signaling for her to stand up, too.
“I’d like you to welcome our new town residents, Mrs. James Donovan and her son, Tate. They are from Chicago and friends of the Wilerson family. Mrs. Donovan is Marshal Wilerson’s new housekeeper.”
Millie sat down quickly while soft murmurs from the congregation drifted to her ears. Adam felt stiff beside her, staring ahead, not acknowledging his “new housekeeper”.
Well, like it or not, Cate handled the introduction for her. Now it was up to herself to blend in to the new community. Millie concentrated on the pastor’s voice because she needed his words to calm her mind and her soul.
***
Adam rose next to her when the pastor asked for the wedding party to come forward. Solemnly he straightened his back, walked a few steps to the front and stood next to Jacob as his brother’s witness. Rania’s sister Hilda moved excitedly in place beside the bride, and then everyone listened to the simple wedding ceremony as Jacob and Rania exchanged vows.
Rania looked calm and utterly beautiful listening to the words of the ceremony. She was as tall as Jacob and looked straight into the adoring eyes of her groom. The sun shone through the simple church glass windows, looking as though the heavens were blessing their union.
“I, Jacob take you Rania to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.”
Millie choked, realizing it could have been, no it should have been Sam telling her those words today. Tears silently moved down her cheeks as Millie thought of her loss. She felt Cate lift squirming Tate out of her tight hold just as he was about to protest her squeezing him. Cate calmly put a finger across her closed lips, and then did it to Tate’s to indicate he should be quiet. Then Cate pulled a soft cloth book out from under her skirt and handed it to Tate. Millie felt even worse that she hadn’t brought anything along to keep Tate quiet, but thankful that Cate had filled in again for her own lack of maternal instincts.
Through her tears, Millie watched Adam sharply turn his head when Tate talked, but his eyes softened when seeing her tear-stained face. Maybe Adam had some compassion for her situation after all.