ROMANCE: Mail Order Bride: A Sheriff's Bride (A Clean Christian Inspirational Historical Western Romance) (New Adult Short Stories) (71 page)

Chapter Six

It was a quiet Sunday morning like any other, and Rebekah and Will were getting ready for church. Rebekah always dressed modestly but still managed to look beautiful. Her floral dress accented her rosy cheeks, and it made Will fall for her all over again. He watched her get ready, smiling as she pinned a few strands of wispy red hair back away from her face.

“You look like an angel.”

She smiled and gently rested a hand on her still flat belly. She wasn’t showing any signs of being with child, but she knew she would start soon. All of the other women seemed impressed that she still managed to look so petite and shapely with a baby on the way.

The small church was only a short walk from their home, so they decided to make the trip on foot. Riding a horse while pregnant made Rebekah nervous, and she avoided it whenever possible, even though Will was convinced that it would be far less strenuous. Rebekah promised that she’d start riding the horse more when she was further along, and Will seemed pleased with that answer.

As the stepped into the church yard, Rebekah’s stomach gave a strange lurch. She stopped dead on her tracks on the cobblestone walk way, her eyes wide. She wasn’t sure why, but she was overcome by the strangest feeling. She needed to run. She needed to get far, far away from this church. It wasn’t safe today.

Will noticed her hesitation and gently reached out to touch her arm, frowning deeply. “Rebekah, are you all right? Are you feeling sick, hon?”

She considered lying for a moment and saying yes, but she didn’t want to miss church. The Sunday morning sermons moved her deeply, and it was something she looked forward to all week. Rebekah took a breath and shook her head, deciding that it was just her nerves. Pregnancy did all sorts of strange things to the body, and it was easy to blame the overwhelming feeling of dread on the same thing that made her sick every morning or cry at the slightest thing.

A weak smile came to her lips, and she shook her head. “I just got a strange feeling. That’s all,” she said, offering her hand to him.

He took her delicate hand and followed her into the church where they found their usual seats. There was no assigned seating in the church, but there was a silent understanding that everyone had their own spot and that they would sit in the same spot every Sunday.

The preacher came before the congregation and motioned for them to stand. As they sang hymns, the feeling of anxiety left Rebekah and was replaced with a feeling of unconditional love. This was why she loved church. There was a bubbling feeling of joy in her chest that she didn’t get anywhere but right here in this church.

When the hymns were done, they took their seats and the preacher gave a moving sermon about forgiveness and love. It move Rebekah to tears, and she caught herself dabbing her eyes with the kerchief she always kept in her pocket during sermons. When the preacher finished, he glanced down at the front row of pews and then up at his congregation.

“We have a special treat today. Mrs. Turner would like to give a small sermon of her own and I hope you all will be as kind to her as you are to me. Come up here, child.”

Rebekah’s blood ran cold as Mary-Anne took the stage, holding a handful of letters. She couldn’t see exactly what they were from where she was sitting, but Rebekah was sure that it was going to be an attack on her. This was what the feeling was warning her about that morning before the service. Mary-Anne never came to church, and if she was here today, then she was here to do some damage.

The tall woman cleared her throat, her blue eyes sweeping the crowd in front of her. “The story of Adam and Eve warns us of a serpent and a woman who would eventually bring man to his knees. This serpent and this woman would conspire together to ruin man and pull him from God’s grace. I ask you now, what if the serpent and the woman were one creature? And what if that creature’s name was Rebekah.” Her cold eyes immediately met Rebekah’s and a slow smirk came to her face.

Will shot up out of his seat, staring at Mary-Anne with a look of pure anger. He opened his mouth to object, but before he could, Mary-Anne grabbed a document from the pile of letters and held it up for the crowd to see.

“Before you go defending her, Will, I think you should know about this.” She shook the document. “This is a contract requesting a divorce from Rebekah’s first husband back in New York. She was already married when she came here—and she still is!”

All the color drained from Rebekah’s face, and tears filled her eyes. Mary-Anna grinned maliciously and threw the paper down.

“If she’s lying about this, what else is she lying about? Is that even your child, or is she trying to cover something up?”

Will turned to look at Rebekah, his eyes filled with pain and betrayal. The idea that the child Rebekah was carrying wasn’t his was far too much for him to take in.

“Rebekah, is it true?” he whispered, reaching out to touch her hand.

Mary-Anne was still grinning, shaking the document as the entire congregation turned to Rebekah and stared, waiting for her answer. Stunned silence filled the church until the only sound anyone could hear was the soft panting sobs as Rebekah covered her face.

“It’s true,” she finally whispered, looking up at Will with a pained expression. “It’s true.”

Chapter Seven

The look of heartbreak on Will’s face was truly crushing. He fell back into the pew, eyes wide as he stared at the woman he considered his beloved.

“It’s true?” he repeated back, clearly not believing it.

Rebekah reached out and touched his cheek. “Are you willing to listen?” she whimpered. “Are you willing to heart my side of the story?”
Mary-Anne was almost jumping up and down with excitement, pointing a finger at Rebekah in an accusatory way. She was glowing, proud of the disturbance she’d created and eager to fuel the fire.

“Confess your sins!” she snapped, eye trained on Rebekah.

Peter jumped up from the crowd and rushed over to the podium where his wife stood and gripped her arm, pulling her away. She’d caused an uproar, and he knew it was because she hoped to ruin Rebekah and Will’s marriage. Even if Rebekah’s past was unsavory, she didn’t deserve to be outed like this. Nobody did. This was the house of God, and it was a place meant for worship, not attack.

Will stared into Rebekah’s eyes, unable to resist leaning into her gentle touch. His chest was aching, but he wanted the truth. Will nodded slowly and took a long, deep breath.”

“I’m willing to listen,” he said softly, closing his eyes and dropping his head.

She nodded and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close and swallowing thickly. “I was married back in New York. That much is true, but that’s where the truth ends and the lies begin. My family is very well-to-do, and I was expected to marry very young. By the time I was 12, my parent’s picked out a rich investment banker that they expected me to marry. I didn’t want to, but they told me if I didn’t, I would be shaming my family.”

Rebekah paused and lifted Will’s head so that she could look into his eyes, her own wide and terrified. She knew that he could walk away and leave her at any moment, but she prayed that he did. She prayed that he loved her as much as he said he did.

“I married him, and my family was so happy and so proud. The wedding was beautiful, and I wore the most extravagant dress, but I wasn’t happy. I was 17 when I married him, and by the time I was 18, I was miserable. I hated my life ,and I wanted to run away. He kept me locked in a room with nothing more than a needle and thread. He didn’t let me go outside because he was afraid the sun would ruin my perfect skin. I cooked for his business partners, and I cleaned his house. I did everything that a good wife was supposed to do, but it was never good enough,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “I’m not sure when the beatings began, but they were brutal. He nearly sent me down the stairs once.”.

Will’s gaze softened, and his eyes widened. Everyone else in the church was silent, listening to every word she said. Even Mary-Anne was wide eyed and attentive.

“I tried to run away many times, but he always caught me. I didn’t have access to his money, and I didn’t know how to survive on my own. I was a proper lady, and I was raised to obey, so when I wanted to fight back, I didn’t know how. I prayed to God for an answer. I prayed that he would get me out of the wretched place and take me to the Promised Land. I prayed to be saved, and he answered with a newspaper ad. I happened onto your ad by accident. Michael left his daily newspaper out, and I was tidying up. I happened to see that there was a man in Montana looking for a bride. If there was anything I knew how to do, it was being a bride, so I answered the ad, and I waited.”

Rebekah lowered her hands to rest on her lap, smiling sadly. “You were the answer to all of my prayers, Will. Yes, I lied. I lied because I was afraid you wouldn’t understand. It has been my experience that most men don’t understand the struggles women face. I expected you to be rough and crude, but you were kind and loving, and you accepted me with all of my flaws. By the time I realized you were the type of man I could tell the truth to, I was afraid that the truth might hurt you far too bad, so I stayed silent,” she whispered. “I didn’t want you to hurt because you save my life, and you showed me that I deserved to be loved. That paper that Mary-Anne stole was the final step to my divorce. When I first came here, it was enough to just run away and be free of that awful man, but the more time I spent with you, the more I wanted to be yours completely. I pray that you understand why I did what I did. I pray that you don’t send me away.”

Will’s brow furrowed, and he looked up at her, his golden-honey eyes wet with tears. He didn’t want to cry, but he was so moved by her story.

“I don’t think I have it in me to send you away,” he admitted, lifting his hand to touch her cheek, brushing his thumb across the pale skin. “You were perfect. When I first met you, I wondered how someone could be so perfect, and I realize now that you have flaws like everyone else.”

Rebekah tensed up under his gentle touch and tears began to roll down her cheeks.

“But we all have flaws,” he added. “We can’t possibly be perfect, and I never should have expected that from you. I don’t care about your past, Rebekah. God brought us together for some reason that only he knows, and I don’t intend on spitting in his face by turning you away. I’m glad that I was the one who saved you from that place. I’m glad that I could bring you here and let you see this beautiful land, and I’m glad that you are my wife. I love you, Rebekah.”

Her chest was rising and falling rapidly as her eyes widened at his words. Her breath was quickening, and even though her chest was tightening, she managed to throw her arms around him and pull herself closer to him, tears of happiness streaming down her face.

“Thank you. Thank you, Will,” she sobbed.

He wrapped his arms around her, one of his hands resting on her belly. “I have to ask, though. Is this baby mine?”

She smiled and pulled away, tears trickling down her rosy cheeks. “Yes, I never consummated my marriage with Mike. I knew in my heart he wasn’t the one God intended me to marry,” she said softly. “This child—0ur child, Will—it’s yours.”

The entire congregation erupted in a roar of cheers and support. Hope swelled inside of Rebekah’s chest, and she knew that this was her home. She was meant to be here with Will and all of these people. This was
her
promised land.

Chapter Eight

The entire town cast Mary-Anne out after what she attempted to pull at the church. Even her husband had little patience for her. She would come to Bible readings and sewing circles to try and talk to people, and everyone just turned their backs. No one trusted her, and everyone was angry at her for what she’d tried to do. She’d attempted to rip up a perfectly happy marriage under the guise of righteousness, and it seemed to be the last straw for most of the townspeople.

The only one who would give her the time of day was Rebekah. Mary-Anne avoided Rebekah for months following the incident, ashamed at herself for what she’d done and assuming that Rebekah would want nothing to do with her. Rebekah was finally the one to break the silence.

She told Mary-Anne that she forgave her. She wasn’t mad at her for what she’d done, and she could tell that the woman was truly sorry. The bible often spoke of forgiveness, and Rebekah was a true believer in the power of love over hate. Mary-Anne broken down into tears at Rebekah’s kindness and struggled to understand why she would forgive her. She’d been so cruel to her, and she even admitted to putting the glass in the garden. Even that admission wasn’t enough to push Rebekah away, and she continued to show Mary-Anne kindness.

When the rest of the town saw that Rebekah forgave Mary-Anne, they followed suit. If Rebekah could forgive her, then everybody else could too. They seemed to understand that she was just an angry, misguided woman. When the town accepted her back into their arms, Mary-Anne became a much more pleasant woman who attended church every Sunday and even began to form a relationship with the husband she’d spurned for so long. Not only that, but she also became Rebekah’s best friend.

As time passed and early spring came around, Rebekah began to grow bigger and bigger by the day. By the time she was ready to welcome her first child into the world, she was so big that all she could do was waddle around.

Will was a proud papa and was always watching Rebekah, making sure that she was safe and that no harm could come to their child. He always seemed ready to defend her or help her if she needed it. Although he was a tough man with rugged hands and a tough exterior, the truth of the matter was that he was a gentle, kind soul.

He tried to play it tough when Rebekah went into labor, but everyone, including the midwife, saw right past that. He was terrified and could hardly watch when their beautiful baby boy was brought into the world.

They gave him the name of an angel because that’s what he was to them. His name was Gabriel, and he was perfect. A soft tuft of sandy hair sat on his head, and his bright green eyes sparkled with mirth from the day he was born. He didn’t cry as much as many of the other babies, and he always seemed to be happy, though he was happiest when he was in his mother’s arms. He was a true blessing and just more reason for Rebekah and Will to love each other.

Will finally had the family he’d always wanted, and Rebekah had the love she always wanted. She’d wanted a family, of course, but it was something she’d never really thought about. She never expected that she would fall in love and be happy, which should have come before having a family.

The sun was just beginning to set on the horizon, and rich streaks of amber and gold cast shadows over the green grass, making their ranch look like a field of honey. Rebekah leaned her head on Will’s shoulder, a soft smile dancing across her plump lips. She held a sleeping Gabriel in her arms, rocking him slowly. It was a year to the day since they’d first met at the train station, guided to one another by something much more powerful and deliberate than chance.

“Did you ever think you could be this happy?” Rebekah asked, looking up at Will.

He smiled and put an arm around her shoulder, leaning down to kiss her flaming hair. “I’d always hoped for it. But I never could have imagined just how perfect it would feel.”

She nodded and leaned into him even more, watching as the sun finally dipped behind the mountains and enveloped them in a soft, purple darkness. The sun might have been setting, but their life was just beginning.

THE END

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