Through the Smoke (47 page)

He bent to kiss her lips. “And the farmer continued to plough.”

“What does that mean?” she asked.

“It’s an old Flemish proverb that goes with the painting. It means life will go on.”

“It will do more than go on, Truman. We will be happy, won’t we?”

His hand cupped her cheek. “It makes me feel guilty to say it, but I am already happy.
You
make me happy. That’s all I need.”

EPILOGUE

Rachel snuggled closer to the warmth of her husband’s body. They had been married for six months, but having him in her bed never grew old. She enjoyed hearing his steady breathing, relished the feel of his bare skin sliding against hers as he moved in the night. She had tried telling him it was unseemly for them to sleep without clothes every night, but he wouldn’t hear of letting that change, and she had only been teasing him anyway. She never felt so content as when she was lying naked in his arms.

A knock sounded at the door. “Uncle Truman? Are you coming?”

It was Geordie. He had taken Wythe’s old room. Although he insisted on being able to continue to work in the stables, he had let them talk him into moving into the house. “Hello? Are you up?”

Truman stirred. “Coming!” he called. Then he grumbled, “Is it morning already?”

“I’m afraid so,” Rachel said with a laugh.

“Um…” He pressed his lips to her temple. “Too bad. That means I have to leave you.”

“It’s nice of you to take Geordie to the colliery. To teach him how to manage your assets.”

“If he is to be steward there someday, he might as well learn while he is young.”

“He would gladly go anywhere with you.”

“He is a good boy. I love having him accompany me. And I can’t think of a better person to understand the needs of the miners.”

She felt as if, by having suggested he groom Geordie to take over the running of Stanhope & Co., she was doing her part for Tommy, her father and the other miners. She didn’t want to abandon their cause or forget her roots, and Truman had proved so understanding about that.

“Uncle Truman? Are you sure you’re getting up?” Geordie asked.

Rachel could hear the eagerness in his voice and knew Truman could too. Her little brother idolized her husband, tried to emulate everything he did. “I promise. I will be right there.”

“I’ll have the horses ready.”

The floor creaked as he hurried away.

“He has been so happy since we came here,” Rachel murmured. “I owe you for that.”

“And what about you?” Leaning up on one elbow, he stared down at her, suddenly serious. “Are you happy, my love?”

She smiled as she gazed into his handsome face, into those amber-colored eyes that had once frightened her so badly. “I couldn’t be happier.”

His hand slid over the swell of her abdomen—evidence that their baby was growing fast. “I can’t believe I almost tried to live without you.”

“You don’t mind being married to a poor village shopkeeper? You don’t mind that your son will be the offspring of a
commoner
?”

He kissed her extended belly. “There is nothing common about you,” he said. “There isn’t another woman on earth I would want to be the mother of my child. You are so much more than I ever dared hope for.”

She slipped her fingers through his thick hair. “I could never love anyone more.”

“That’s what I wanted to hear.” He pecked her lips. “I had better go. I don’t want to keep my brother waiting.”

Reluctantly she let him slide out of bed and, while he dressed, she enjoyed the view. But as he started to leave, she shifted her attention to
Landscape With the Fall of Icarus
, which they had hung in their room.

“What are you thinking?” he asked, following her gaze.

She pursed her lips. “Of the fire, everything. It seems like such a distant memory now.”

“It was all worth it,” he said.

She studied him. “You can’t mean that. You endured so much.”

His eyes met hers. “But without my particular past, I never would have found you.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

M
ICAH
K
ANDROS

When Brenda Novak caught her daycare provider drugging her young children with cough medicine to get them to sleep all day while she was away at work, she quit her job as a loan officer to stay home with them. She felt she could no longer trust others with their care. But she still had to find some way to make a living. That was when she picked up one of her favorite books. She was looking for a brief escape from the stress and worry—and found the inspiration to become a novelist.

Since her first sale to HarperCollins in 1998 (
Of Noble Birth
), Brenda has written nearly fifty books in a variety of genres. Now a
New York Times
and
USA Today
best-selling author, she still juggles her writing career with the demands of her large family and interests such as cycling, traveling and reading. A three-time Rita nominee, Brenda has won many awards for her books, including The National Reader’s Choice, The Bookseller’s Best, The Book Buyer’s Best and The Holt Medallion. She also runs an annual online auction for diabetes research every May at
www.brendanovak.com
(her youngest son suffers from this disease). To date, she’s raised over $2 million.