C
HAPTER
F
OUR
T
he day of the wedding dawned full of clouds with a misty rain in the air. The steel gray of the sky loomed overhead as Hannah and her grandmother walked toward the church. She wore Granny’s old shoes, the ones she’d worn at her own wedding fifty years earlier. They were old, dusty, and a little too small, but they were better than clumpy boots, the only footwear Hannah had.
Hannah had thought she wouldn’t be nervous, but she was. With each footstep, her stomach twisted tighter. She was about to be married! For the last few years, that had seemed like an impossible dream. The unreality of the situation was not lost on her.
She felt like a different person, and she wore a pretty dress for the occasion. It was light blue, made from Granny’s own wedding dress as well. Fitting because it was borrowed, old, and blue, if they were to follow the rhyme. Granny was a genius with a sewing needle and, within four days, had altered the dress to fit Hannah’s rounder, shorter figure.
For the first time in her life, Hannah felt pretty. Too bad she also felt like she wanted to vomit.
They were to meet the groom at ten o’clock at the small church and although it was only nine thirty, they headed over. Sometimes the cold weather made it difficult for Granny to walk and Hannah didn’t want her grandmother to have to rush. That could lead to an injury, the very last thing they needed.
Hannah had actually spent time fixing her hair that morning, another unusual occurrence. She normally put it in a braid or in a knot and never thought twice about it. Of course, she had wasted her time attempting to look pretty, for the rain had already turned her hair into a mass of kinky curls. It had been the first time she’d tried ironing it, too. She hoped her new husband didn’t notice the burn mark on her neck.
The door to the church was slightly ajar. Perhaps the preacher was already there, waiting or preparing for the ceremony. Matthew had told her he would make the arrangements. She hadn’t heard anything from him except a cryptic note three days earlier to meet him at the church at ten.
That time had almost arrived.
“Stop pinching my arm, child.” Granny pulled her to a stop. “There’s no need to be scared. He’s a good man.”
“I’m not scared, Granny. I’m, um, well, I’m not scared.” Her stomach told another story, but she wasn’t about to admit it. “I’m just worried is all. Nobody’s bought the boardinghouse yet.”
“That fella from Eagle Creek might. He came back twice already. Said he was gonna bring his missus next week.” Granny waved her free hand in dismissal. “I ain’t worried, so you don’t need to be.”
“But I—”
“We’re done jawing about it.” The older woman started walking again and Hannah had no choice but to keep up. “You are trying to slow down time and it won’t work.”
Was that what she was doing? Trying to hold onto her maiden status just a few minutes longer? Granny was probably right. Hannah held her head high and straightened her shoulders. At least she could maintain her dignity and show her new husband just how much of a lady she was.
She pulled the church door open and held it for Granny. When they stepped inside the gloom of the foyer, the church was totally silent. Then as Hannah walked into the light, she realized that although it was quiet, the church was not empty by any means.
There were seven of them, all standing together at the altar. The tallest was Matthew, but there were two other young men beside him, and four girls. Hannah recognized the oldest girl from long ago when she had attended school, but couldn’t remember her name. They were all of varying sizes, some with brown straight hair, some with brown wavy hair, even one with blond hair. Their eyes, however, were very similar, all shades of the same bluish green, all blinking at her like a family of owls.
Hannah’s heart slammed into her throat and she couldn’t have made a sound if she’d tried. Granny must have sensed Hannah’s panic and the old woman saved her again.
“Well, howdy. I didn’t know we’d have a passel of folks here.” Granny stepped forward, peering at each of them in turn. “I’m Martha Dolan. You can call me Granny. This here is my granddaughter, Hannah Foley.”
Hannah was able to catch her breath and murmur a hello. Not a great first impression to make with her new family, but there it was.
“She’s tall.” The smallest of the bunch, a blond-haired girl, peered up at Hannah. “Almost as tall as Matt.”
Matt.
It suited him better than Matthew. One was formal while the other matched him, at least what she knew of him. She felt as if she’d stepped back in time and had an arranged marriage. But instead of the marriage being arranged by their parents, they’d done it themselves. Many marriages still started out that way, where the bride and groom barely knew each other.
“Hush now, Catherine. Let me introduce you proper.” Matt nodded at Hannah. “Miss Foley, Mrs. Dolan, may I present Olivia, Caleb, Nicholas, Elizabeth, Rebecca, and Catherine Graham.” Each sibling in turn either nodded or curtseyed toward them. They were obviously a well mannered family.
“It’s very nice to meet you all.” Hannah winced to hear how breathy she sounded. “I knew you had a big family but didn’t realize how big.” She smiled shakily at Olivia. “I remember you from Miss Green’s classroom when I was seven.”
Olivia’s brows drew together. “Now that you mention it, yes, I do remember you. You left after that year, didn’t you?”
The memory of not going back to school hit Hannah. Her parents had died of a fever within two days of each other, leaving Hannah an orphan, and in her grandmother’s care. It was the darkest time of her life, one she was sorry she had brought up.
“I did, that’s right.” Hannah turned her attention to Matthew, trying to close the door on her ancient pain. “Is the preacher here?”
“Uh, not yet. We got here early.”
“We had to get up before the sun,” the young girl said. “That was really eeeearly. I had to eat in the wagon, and I dropped a piece of my biscuit.” She looked very unhappy about that biscuit.
“Catherine, hush up,” Olivia snapped. “Miss Foley doesn’t need to hear any of that from you.”
“Don’t tell her to hush up.” Another sister, possibly Rebecca, stuck her chin up in the air.
“Don’t think you can just do whatever you please.” Olivia put her hands on her hips. “I am still—”
“Enough.” Matt’s hand cut through the air. “Now is not the time for bickering.” He turned his gaze to Hannah and in the depths of his pretty eyes, she saw exhaustion and stress. “Can I talk to you?”
Hannah’s heart did a little flip. She wondered if he’d changed his mind before they even saw the preacher. It wasn’t as if she would blame him for changing his mind, but oh, how it would hurt.
He took her elbow lightly, leading her toward the back of the small church and away from the big ears of his family. Granny started talking to the Grahams, distracting them so Hannah and Matt could speak privately.
He stopped in the shadowy corner by the door. After blowing out a breath, he took off his hat and met her gaze. “I just want to make sure you still want to marry me. I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t. I surprised you and now that you’ve had a week to think about it, I thought you might have changed your mind.”
She looked at him in astonishment. He thought
she
might change her mind? The very idea almost made her laugh but she kept it inside through sheer force of will.
“No, I haven’t changed my mind.” She clasped her hands together so he wouldn’t see them shaking.
“What about your grandmother?”
Hannah blinked. “What about her?”
“Will she want to live with us at the ranch?”
“Um, I’m not sure. All the boarders moved out this week, but we need to sell the boardinghouse. There is no way she can run it without me. Then she has to decide what she wants to do.” She and Granny had talked about it each night, speculating what she might want to do.
“We have a housekeeper and cook, Eva, but she’s lonely, always talking about visiting in town with other women.” He spun his hat on his hand. “I just wanted to tell you your granny is welcome to live with us. We can find room for her.”
At that very moment, Hannah fell a little in love with Matt. He had worried about her grandmother, which told her a lot about his character. She smiled at him, the first genuine smile she’d felt since meeting him.
“That’s very kind of you. I think she might accept.” She glanced at her grandmother, knee deep in little girls. “Granny loves to tell stories and be around young’uns.”
“There’s plenty of those around the ranch.” He put his hat back on his head and held out his arm.
Matt might be a cowboy but he was a gentleman. Hannah nestled her arm in his and took the first step toward her new life.
Matt had never felt so out of control in his life. Hannah and her grandmother weren’t making him nervous; his stomach was. He was about to marry someone and spend the rest of his life with her, and he didn’t even know her middle name. It was loco and the stupidest thing he’d ever done, yet he wasn’t going to stop now. He’d made sure she was still going to go through with it and that reassurance was all he needed. It was too important to his family that he go through with this quick marriage.
Too bad nobody had told his stomach. He hoped he didn’t embarrass himself and vomit all over his intended.
The preacher appeared through the back door, scowling at all of them. They were being loud, as always, but most of them were crowded around Mrs. Dolan as she spun a yarn about a chicken and a full moon.
“This is a house of God, children. You must show the proper respect.” Reverend Beechum was not his favorite person. In fact, Matt had never liked him, and neither had his father. They didn’t go to church much because of the gray-haired bible-thumper. He made children feel like sinners if they lied about sneaking a cookie, but he was the only preacher in town. That left Matt with no choice.
The children hushed up, frightened by the preacher’s surly visage. Matt felt Hannah tighten up beside him and he didn’t blame her a whit. This church was not a happy place.
“Mr. Graham, do you have my fee?” Another reason Matt didn’t want to be here. They were paying the man
five
dollars to perform a marriage ceremony. It stuck in Matt’s craw to even give the man the time of day, much less a chunk of their money. However, he handed it over, albeit grudgingly.
“Excellent.” The money disappeared into the voluminous trousers the preacher wore. “Now, are we ready to begin?”
Matt swallowed the huge lump in his throat. “Yes, we are.”
He stepped forward with Hannah at his side and knew the course of his life had just taken a sharp right turn. He was stepping into his future.
The preacher spoke his words quickly, a simple ceremony that could have been done by a judge. The only time the man showed a glimmer of emotion was when Matt told him he didn’t have a ring.
“No ring?” His disapproval was almost palpable.
“No, sir. I didn’t have money for one.” He turned to Hannah. “I promise I’ll get you one someday.”
She shook her head. “I don’t mind waiting. It’s okay.”
Matt was lying to both his new wife and the obnoxious minister marrying them. He had a ring—his mother’s. She’d hardly worn it because she did so much work with her hands that she was always afraid of losing it. The ring sat in a small pouch in the chest of drawers her husband had made for her, beneath the clothes she’d never wear again. Matt had found it when he had cleaned their room.
He had stared at the ring in his palm, knowing he should give it to Hannah. It was what his mother would have wanted, but he couldn’t do it. The ring was now safely tucked away beneath his own clothes in the chest of drawers in his parents’ room, the room that was now his.
“It’s not proper, but I understand the need to conserve funds with so many children in the family.” The preacher made it sound as if having children was a bad idea. Didn’t the church promote being fruitful?
“Ain’t nothing wrong with lots of young’uns,” Granny piped up. Matt decided he really liked Martha. If she were a man, he’d say she had brass balls.
With a disapproving look at the older woman, the preacher finished the ceremony within a minute or two. “I now pronounce you man and wife.”
Without preamble, he led them to a table in the corner to sign the marriage certificate. Matt had forgotten to ask Hannah if she could write, and was glad to see her sign her name, even if it was with a shaking hand.
“Congratulations, Mr. Graham. Mrs. Graham. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have other duties to attend to.”
Reverend Beechum herded all of them out of the church and they found themselves outside in the rain, the door firmly shut behind them.
“He didn’t do the kiss the bride part.” Catherine always had something to say. “Does that mean you’re not married?”