The Convenient Mail Order Bride (5 page)

I
t
didn’t take long for Phoebe and her mother to put their things
away, but she didn’t realize her hands were shaking until she
closed the last drawer in the armoire. At one time, it had belonged
to someone. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be in this room, ready for use.
There was also a bed her and her mother would share. She guessed a
woman—perhaps Abe’s mother—had lived in this cabin.

For all she knew, he’d built it for his
mother. Or maybe his father had built it for his mother, though the
two had never married. She wouldn’t know the details unless she
asked, and she felt she’d asked him too much already.

“At least you have a chance to get to know
him before you marry him,” her mother said.

Though her mother whispered, Phoebe glanced
at the closed door, wondering if Abe could hear them. She went over
to the small window and saw he was outside talking to Eric.
Relieved, she turned back to her mother. “We can speak freely. He’s
not in the cabin.” She went over to the bed and sat down, taking a
moment to steady her nerves before continuing. “I didn’t expect to
be this nervous.”

Her mother sat beside her and drew her in
for a comforting hug. “Up to now, all we’ve been thinking of is
making it through the trip.”

She nodded. That was probably it. She
settled her head on her mother’s shoulder. “Do you think I made the
right decision?”

“I don’t see what other choice you had.”

She swallowed her tears. “I wish he’d posted
the ad instead of Carl. This would be much easier if he had.”

“Yes, it would be.” Her mother squeezed her
shoulders. “I wish we had a rock in our purses when we hit him. He
got off too easy, if you ask me.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle. “He did.” She
straightened up and wiped away a couple of tears that refused to
stay at bay. “What was he thinking by doing something so horrible?
He had to have known he was putting us and Abe in a difficult
situation.”

“Some people don’t care who they hurt. All
they care about is themselves. That Carl Richie is one of
them.”

“At least we know who to avoid when we go to
town.” She blinked back more tears. “Though it’s not much of a
town, is it?”

“We knew we’d have to give up a lot to live
out West. But I will say this place is bigger than I thought it’d
be. We could have fit us and your brother’s family in here
comfortably.”

“That’s true. It’s one of the nicest places
I’ve ever seen.” She paused then asked, “Do you think that means
Abe’s a good man? I mean, he takes care of his things.”

“Yes, I think he’ll be good to you.”

“I suppose it’s just a matter of getting to
know him. Then maybe I won’t feel so nervous.”

“Why don’t you go out there and see if he
needs help?”

Phoebe glanced out the window. Eric was no
longer there. Her gaze went to the roof where Abe was laying
something out. Would she get in his way? Would he tell her if she
was? She supposed there was only one way to find out, and now that
she was done helping her mother unpack, she had nothing else to do.
Besides, maybe if she let him know she was willing to help, he’d
feel better about having her and her mother here.

Her mother yawned, and Phoebe suddenly
realized how much the days of travel had exhausted the poor woman.
Phoebe fluffed the small pillow on the bed.

“I’ll go out there and offer to help,” she
told her mother. “Lie down. You must be tired.”

“Sometimes I miss being young. Don’t take it
for granted you can go out there and help him right after a long
trip.”

“I won’t.” After her mother settled onto the
bed, Phoebe placed her hand on her arm and smiled. “I’m glad you’re
here.”

Her mother clasped her hand over hers and
squeezed it. “Everything will be alright. Just remember to see the
good in things.” With a contented sigh, she closed her eyes.

Phoebe waited for a moment, giving herself a
chance to gather her courage, then left the room. She didn’t know
if Abe would welcome her out there or not. He had tried to dissuade
her from marrying him. Maybe she should have explained everything
to her mother, but in the end, all she said was that he offered to
let them stay and see if marriage would benefit them both.

It took her a full two minutes before she
was able to leave the house. It had proved to be a good hiding
place, at least temporarily. But really, she couldn’t hide there
forever. Sooner or later, she had to see him.

She stepped onto the porch and softly shut
the door. There were two rocking chairs, just as there had been two
beds in the cabin. One chair must have been for his mother. The
other must have been for him. He’d said his parents hadn’t been
married. Did that mean he didn’t know his father? She hadn’t dared
to ask, nor did she think she’d have the nerve to do so. Not any
time soon anyway. She’d just met him. While she intended to marry
him, they had a ways to go before she’d find out the details about
his past. She, on the other hand, had nothing to hide. He could ask
her anything, and she’d answer him.

But that was neither here nor there. Before
they were ready to talk about their past, they’d be better off
getting to know each other, as her mother had suggested. She took a
deep breath and released it. A breeze rustled the tree branches.
Except for that and the occasional neighing and mooing from the
animals, she didn’t hear a thing. What a difference it was from
Cincinnati. It was so quiet here. She didn’t know if she’d ever get
used to it, but she did enjoy the expanse of land which sloped
gently down the hillside, and she liked the trees that were all
around her, giving her a sense of privacy she’d never really
had.

The sound of a hammer hitting a nail brought
her attention back to Abe, who was pounding something on the roof.
She swallowed the lump in her throat. She’d come out here to offer
him a helping hand, and that’s exactly what she’d do.

Acting braver than she felt, she headed down
the porch steps and crossed the distance to the barn. He didn’t
notice her. At least, he didn’t give any indication he noticed
her.

“Abe?” she called out once she reached the
ladder.

He stopped hammering and glanced down at
her. “Do you need something?”

“No. Mother and I are fine. I came out to
see if you needed help.”

“Help?”

Noting the bewildered tone in his voice, she
said, “Well, you’re on top of the barn repairing the roof. I might
not know much about fixing things, but I can offer my assistance.
Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

He didn’t answer right away, and she
couldn’t tell if he’d heard her or not over the rustling trees
around them. But then, he said, “I could use some more nails.”

“I’ll be happy to bring them up. Where are
they?”

“On the shelf over the worktable in the
barn. It’s right by the window.”

“I’ll be right up.”

Without waiting for him to respond, she
hurried into the barn. A horse neighed at her, almost causing her
to bump into the worktable. She had to get a hold of herself. Yes,
it was natural to be nervous. Any woman in her situation would be
nervous. So much depended on how the next couple of weeks went.

Taking a moment to regain her composure, she
scanned the barn. A horse was in one of the stalls, and there was a
cow in the other. Two other stalls were empty, having just been
swept out. There were hooks along the walls with rakes and shovels
and other items hanging on them. Then there was a section in the
corner with a saddle. Her gaze went up to the loft. She had no idea
what he had up there. But as her gaze swept the ceiling, she could
see the hole he was repairing. At the moment, he had resumed his
hammering, reminding her he needed more nails.

She found the tin cup he’d mentioned and
grabbed it. She climbed the ladder, careful to keep a firm grip on
the cup as she did so. When she reached the roof, he put his hammer
down and crossed the short distance to her.

“Thanks,” he said, taking it.

He scooted back to the small hole.

He probably expected her to go back down the
ladder and return to the house, but she decided to join him. Never
once in Ohio did she think she’d ever be so bold. He hadn’t invited
her to come up on the roof, after all. But if she was going to
marry him, she couldn’t spend her entire life hiding from him.

She had to lift her skirt in order to get on
the roof. Thankfully, he wasn’t even looking in her direction, or
else he would have seen her face flush a brighter shade of red from
exposing so much of her legs.

Once she was presentable, she sat near him
and asked, “What happened to the roof?”

He jerked, and she was surprised he hadn’t
heard her. She didn’t think she’d been that quiet. “Do you mind if
I’m up here?” she finally asked when he didn’t say anything.

He blinked for a moment then shook his head.
“No. I just thought you and your mother would be busy
unpacking.”

“Oh, we’re done. I came out because there’s
nothing else to do. My mother is resting.” She shrugged. “I don’t
like to sit around when there’s work to be done.”

“Well, this isn’t the kind of work for a
lady.”

“I know, but I can help.” She gestured to
the cup of nails beside him. “I got those.”

He let out a soft chuckle, and she couldn’t
help but note how nice he looked when he smiled. “I can’t think of
anything else for you to do.”

She brought her knees up to her chest,
hugging them. “Can I keep you company?”

He didn’t answer right away. In fact, he
looked down at the hammer and nails in this hand. Then, after a
long moment, he returned his gaze to her. “You’re a talker, aren’t
you?”

“A what?”

“A talker. You like to be around people. You
don’t like being alone. Am I right?”

“I don’t like to be the center of attention,
but I enjoy time with family and friends.” When he didn’t respond,
she asked, “Are you the type who prefers to be alone?”

“I don’t mind being alone. Sometimes it’s
better to be alone than be in a group and realize you’re all
alone.”

Her eyebrows furrowed at his meaning. “How
is that possible?”

He shook his head. “A pretty, white lady
like you wouldn’t know.”

Trying not to let the fact that he called
her pretty deter her from figuring out what he meant, she said, “My
experience with people has been limited. I admit that. But I’d
still like to know how that’s possible.”

He let out a long sigh. “Just because you
are in a room full of people, it doesn’t mean those people want you
there. Sometimes they consider you to be an inconvenience.
Sometimes you have to fight to be heard. It’s good you’ll never
know what I’m talking about.”

He turned his attention back to hammering
the nail into the roof, and she struggled with knowing what to say
next. Finally, she ventured, “I’m sorry you have to go through
that.”

He stopped pounding the nail. “It doesn’t
bother me. I’m used to it.”

His comment made her wonder how much he’d
been through, how often he felt left out. But she sensed it wasn’t
the time to press him on this. She’d only met him an hour ago.
Deciding it might be best to change the topic, she scanned the
property. There were trees throughout his land, and the buildings
were on a slight incline. But further down, she caught sight of a
stream just beyond a row of newly planted trees. When she looked
up, above the trees, she caught sight of mountains in the
background.

“You have a beautiful view,” she said.

“It’s alright.”

“Alright? It’s amazing. I’ve never seen such
beauty.”

He gestured to the stream with his hammer.
“You see that area over there?”

“Yes.”

“That should be mine, but Carl has staked it
as if it belongs to him. And you want to know why? Because he
thinks whatever he wants is his. He has no respect for other
people’s things.”

To her surprise, he set the hammer and nails
down and scooted over to her. He pushed his black hair over his
shoulder.

“That area belonged to my uncle before he
died,” he continued. “He and my mother were forced out of their
tribe when the white man came for the gold in Georgia. He built
this place with his own two hands. Then he died and left my mother
everything. After that, Carl’s father felt it was his right to take
the stream and twenty acres on the other side of it.” He motioned
back to the area surrounded by trees. “That’s what white men do.
They see something and they take it. They don’t care if it already
belongs to someone or not. Then they have the nerve to act as if
we’re wrong for wanting them to get off our land. You know what
Carl wants with that land?”

Of course, she didn’t, which made it ironic
he even asked the question. But since he seemed to want her to
speak, she obliged him. “What does he want?”

“Gold.”

She didn’t know what he expected her to say.
In Ohio, these things weren’t important. She’d only heard a little
about gold rushes out West, but it’d never concerned her so she
dismissed the small tidbits she’d heard. Apparently, the whole
thing was important out here, and she had a nagging suspicion she
was going to learn a lot more about it in the years to come.

Abe let out a long sigh and rubbed his
forehead. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be troubling you with all of
this. It’s not your fault. I know you’re white, but you had nothing
to do with it. Sometimes I have to remind myself not all white
people are bad.”

With a sinking feeling in her heart, Phoebe
turned her attention back to the mountains. She didn’t know much of
his past, but from what she gathered, things hadn’t been very
pleasant for him. And this would undoubtedly affect how things were
going to be between them.

He glanced at her then to the hole in the
roof. “I should get back to work.”