“Isn"t it obvious? I thought you were pretty.”
I guessed as much but it was nice to hear.
We got out of the sleigh and introduced John and
Barbara to my parents. As Todd was about to join John and
my father out to the Russell barn, I quickly asked Todd why
men liked to separate themselves from women.
“Because, you"re stil boring,” he good-naturedly
replied. “When you get together, you talk about cooking,
cleaning or children. God forbid you should mention a
female problem. Those are the scariest of all talks, and I"ve
heard enough of those from my sisters.”
“So what do you men talk about?”
“Work. Sometimes we discuss how to fix things.”
“Oh. Now that"s boring.” Thank goodness I didn"t
have any brothers to listen to while growing up.
“At least when we get together, the conversation is
better for both of us.” He kissed the top of my nose. “Just so
you know, I enjoy our time together the most.”
“Me too.”
I smiled as he walked to Calvin, John and my father.
As much as I looked forward to spending time with Barbara
and my mother, I knew my thoughts would be on Todd and
how wonderful he was. Barbara was delighted to see that
things were better between me and Todd.
216
Falling In Love With Her Husband
“I prayed day and night that you two would be
alright,” she confided while my mother talked to Molly and
Bruce. “But today, you are glowing.”
“I appreciate your prayers. They worked.”
“Thank goodness.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Tired but happy, especially since you and Todd are
alright.”
Bruce led my mother to us. “Can Mrs. Statesman
see my jacks?”
“Yes, she may,” Barbara replied.
He ran into the house.
“Would you like to come inside?” Barbara asked me
and my mother.
We nodded and joined her.
***
When we decided to go to town, I was surprised that
Todd, John and my father went to visit Mr. Fields who had
puppies he was eager to give away. I wondered why they
brought two light brown and white puppies. I soon
discovered that one was for John"s children and the other
one was for me and Todd. I wanted to ask Todd why we
needed a puppy but knew he would tell me later. While the
men stayed to talk to Mr. Fields, Barbara took me and my
mother to visit her mother and to meet Mr. and Mrs. Coley.
Afterwards, we returned to the Russell house to
prepare dinner. My mother insisted on playing with the
children since she made a better nanny than a cook.
“She enjoys the children as much as you do,”
Barbara commented as she rolled the dough.
I stuffed the dough with cheese and folded the dough
to make ravioli. “She spent a lot of time with me when I was
a little girl. I suppose since I was the only child, it was easy
to devote most of her time to me.”
217
Falling In Love With Her Husband
“She seems like a compassionate person.”
“She is. I think she took my heartbreak over Kent
worse than I did. It wasn"t that she liked him. She liked
Todd more, but it hurt her to watch me in pain.” I sighed
thoughtfully. “She"l make a good grandmother.”
Barbara looked at me. “Is that a possibility?”
“A lot has changed in two days,” I simply replied, my
cheeks hot from embarrassment.
“What great news! Maybe you"l be expecting soon
and we can have our babies close together. They could be
good friends.”
I smiled. “What if I have a girl and you have a boy?”
“Then maybe they"l marry someday.”
“You"re horrible!”
She shrugged. “It"s fun to imagine.”
I grinned. Yes, it was.
***
After my parents settled into bed for the night, Todd
said he wanted to talk to me, so I sat next to him on the
couch. The puppy quietly played in the corner with an old
shoe. I hoped this talk would explain the sudden need for a
dog.
“I know this is something you don"t like to think
about, but I need you to remember something for me,” he
said.
I frowned. This didn"t sound promising.
“When I saw you and Kent in the mercantile, did he
say anything after I left?”
I blinked in surprise. I stared at the fire as I
processed the events through my mind. I had focused so
much on the fact that Todd saw us kissing that I hadn"t
considered what happened afterwards. A feeling of dread
washed over me. “He said he would be back.”
218
Falling In Love With Her Husband
“That"s what Mrs. Carson said. You didn"t mention it
before, so I couldn"t be sure that is what happened but now I
know. Your father recommended that we get a dog for
protection. I can"t be here all the time.”
I sat up straight. “You think he"l come here? To our
home?”
“I don"t know but I"d rather play it safe. I want you to
come with me to the barn.”
I reluctantly put on my coat and followed him outside.
Once he set the lantern on the ground, he picked up his
gun.
“What are you doing?” I asked, though I real y didn"t
want to know.
“You may need to use this. The dog won"t do
enough damage to stop him. It will just buy you time. If
Kent"s serious, he"l stil come after you. Ann, shooting
someone to protect yourself is not murder.”
I shivered. I didn"t feel comfortable using a gun.
“Can"t I use something else?” Did I real y want to be out
here, having this conversation?
He thought for a moment. “I guess the gun is
intimidating to a woman.”
This whole conversation was intimidating to a
woman. Was Kent going to drag me off and force me to be
his wife? Did Todd think that would actually happen? I
recalled the way he kissed me, the force he used and how
he wouldn"t go away when I told him to. I quickly turned
around so I could regain my composure.
Todd wrapped his arms around me. “Ann, I hope I"m
overreacting, but I can"t afford to take my chances. You
said you were afraid of him. I can only do so much to
protect you. As long as you"re with someone in town, I think
you"l be safe. But if you"re alone here, there"s no one to
help you. Your father is going to discuss the situation with
Kent"s father. Hopefully, they can resolve the issue. In the
meantime, I need you to be strong for me. Please?”
219
Falling In Love With Her Husband
I took a deep breath. “I"l learn to shoot the gun.”
He smiled. “There"s the girl that threw sand on two
class bullies.”
I laughed, glad to have the mood lightened. I didn"t
want to think of Kent. I wanted to focus on Todd and how
wonderful it felt to be loved by him.
“We won"t practice tonight, but I want to show you
where to find the gun in case you need it.”
I watched him put it behind the pile of chopped
wood.
He continued to explain, “I figure that if you"re at the
house, the dog will attack Kent and it should give you
enough time to get the gun. I"m going to install door locks
on the front and back doors of the house.” He picked up the
axe that had been behind the chopped wood and placed it
on the shelf above the wood. “We"l start practicing after
your parents leave.”
As he took my hand and led me back into the house,
I hoped that I would never have to follow his plan.
***
My parents stayed for two weeks before they went
back to Virginia. Todd and I spent Thanksgiving with the
Russells and their relatives. For Christmas, I gave Todd a
new pair of boots that would be durable for farming. He
gave me a wedding ring.
“Todd, it"s beautiful,” I said that night as we sat
together in front of the fire in the parlor. “I think it"s the most
beautiful ring I"ve ever seen.”
“You"ve owned fancier rings than that one.”
“Maybe. But none of them were from you.”
He put his arm around me. “Is it any wonder that I
love you?”
I finally stopped staring at the ring and turned to him.
“I would like to go into town tomorrow and help Mrs. Carson
220
Falling In Love With Her Husband
take down Christmas decorations at the church. She"s
really a different person now. Even Mr. Carson decided to
go to church. He wanted to know what caused the big
change.”
“It"s nice to know you two are friends.” He held my
hand. “You don"t have to keep working for the Coley"s. We
have plenty of money.”
“I supposed that was the case when I gave you the
dowry. I still get food and cooking supplies, but I also enjoy
being there. I"ve made some friends in town and it"s a great
way to visit them. You would be surprised at how many
women go shopping during the day.”
“More boring women talk. No wonder men rarely
enter the mercantile.”
I didn"t take offense at his comment since I knew he
was joking.
Someone knocked at the door so I jumped up to
answer it. I blinked in surprise. What was Mr. Richard
doing here?
He took his hat off. “Good evening, ma"am. May I
speak with your husband?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Todd who hopped off
the couch.
“Mr. Richard, it"s a pleasure to see you. Come in,”
he invited.
I moved aside and took his coat and hat which I
hung on the nail by the door. “Would you like some hot
cocoa?” I asked him.
“No thank you, Mrs. Brothers.”
I looked at Todd to see if he wanted something to
drink.
He shook his head.
“If you"l excuse me, gentlemen,” I said and left the
room.
I went upstairs and changed into my nightgown. As
soon as I got into bed, I realized how tired I was and fell
221
Falling In Love With Her Husband
asleep. I didn"t wake up until the next morning. I squinted
as I lifted my head off the pillow.
Todd smiled at me. “Good morning.”
“What time is it?”
“Almost seven.”
“I must have been more tired than I thought.”
He chuckled. “Would you like some good news?”
“Sure. It"s a good way to start the day.”
“Mr. Richard discovered who stole the money.”
“Real y? Who did it?”
“Mr. Randolph. He"s been working at the bank for
ten years. Shortly after I began working at the bank, his wife
got sick. Since there wasn"t anyone to take care of her, he
missed a lot of work. He took some money when they ran
out of food. He thought that he could make up the work by
doing overtime, but her health kept getting worse. Mr.
Richard caught him taking some money out of the safe
yesterday.”
“But the bank was closed.”
“That"s why Mr. Richard went to investigate the bank.
He noticed someone was inside it. Mr. Randolph knew
where Mr. Richard put the key, so that"s how he got in
without being noticed.”
“So did Mr. Randolph plant the money and the
combination to the safe in your desk?”
“Yes. He was desperate and scared. He was afraid
if he lost his job, then he wouldn"t be able to support him
and his wife at all.” He reached for my hand. “Mrs. Carson
happened to be passing the bank and heard what was going
on. She volunteered to watch Mrs. Randolph so he could go
back to work. He"l be working some overtime to pay back
what he stole, but I think everyone is happy with the
outcome. Even though stealing is wrong, I can understand
why he did it. I"m glad he"l be paying Mr. Richard back, and
it"s great that Mrs. Carson is doing so much good for people
in town.”
222
Falling In Love With Her Husband
I nodded.
“Mr. Richard offered me the job back, but I said I was
happy working for Mr. Fields. Isn"t it amazing how things
work out? Mr. Richard gave me some money for what he
did to me. I told him he actually did me a favor because I
hated that job.”
“That"s wonderful news for everyone.”
“I had to resist the urge to wake you up last night and
tell you. You were just too tired. I couldn"t wake you up.”
I snuggled up to him and smiled.
223
Falling In Love With Her Husband