“I think kissing you will fast become a habit,” he said softly. “You are a lovely woman, Marianne. I’ll enjoy very much being married to you.”
His arms tightened their grip on her and she was pulled tautly against his long frame, the powerful lines of his chest cushioning her breasts, his long legs surrounding her more feminine lines. Her hands moved from his shoulders to his hair, to that dark, waving mass of silky stuff that invited her fingers to investigate and caress the fine threads that seemed to be as soft as dandelion fluff in the spring.
She tilted her head back and looked closely at his face, the straight nose and dark brows over blue eyes that glowed with a strange light even now. His jaw was firm, with just a trace of whiskers to mar the surface, and her hand went there, feeling the roughness of his beard, which was so much a part of a man. She was held tightly against him, and his legs were taut with a strength she had not realized—his very body seemed coiled and ready, as if he would move on to another phase of this courting he’d undertaken. For surely that was what he had set into motion. An accelerated courting that would last only a day, for on the morrow they would be wed.
“I don’t know much about what goes on in a marriage, only that my mother and father were happy together, and worked together to make a home. I know she loved him and cared for him, and he felt the same way about her. They touched frequently, his hand on her shoulder or her hand reaching to touch his fingers at the table. And I know there was a connection between them that defied my imagination, for they were very close, very loving when they thought I didn’t notice.”
“It sounds to me as though you had a good pattern to follow, Marianne,” David said with a broad smile. “My own parents had just such a marriage. We always knew that they put each other first in all things, that we children were loved, but that their marriage was important to them.”
“That’s what I want in life,” she said quietly. “I need a man to care about me and my brother and always take care of us.”
“And is he your brother, Marianne? I know that the ladies in town have spoken in the general store and the mayor asked me outright if Joshua was indeed your brother or if he was your own child.”
“I haven’t told you any falsehood, David. It is exactly as I said. My mother died just minutes before he was born. He’s my only relative, my brother. I’m sworn to care for him and provide him a good life.”
“All right. I don’t want you to be upset, sweetheart. It’s just that folks have noticed he holds a close resemblance to you, and that fact alone made the ladies suspicious. I’ll be sure that they know the truth of it.”
“I can’t prove it, David, unless I write to my old neighbor and ask for a letter of verification from her.”
“It may come to that one day, but for now I’m satisfied with what you’ve said.”
And yet a pall hung over Marianne’s mood, for if there was the slightest doubt in David’s mind that she was not what she claimed to be, she would not be happy in this marriage. It was with a heavy heart that she retired that night, the loneliest Christmas of her life, for there had been no gifts to exchange, no words of celebration, only the dinner she’d cooked and a second reading of the Christmas story from St. Luke.
She slept better than she’d expected, Joshua being well fed at bedtime and sleeping throughout the long night hours. The rooster from next door awoke them again at dawn and she rolled from the bed and dressed quickly, carrying Joshua to the kitchen to feed him. In minutes she had warmed his milk and filled his bottle, and she was settled in the rocking chair when David came from his room.
“Good morning,” he said quietly. “You haven’t changed your mind about today, have you, sweetheart?” He watched her closely from his place by the stove, one hand holding the stove lid, the other a chunk of wood he was planning to lay within the black cave, where it would provide enough heat to cook breakfast.
“No, I’ve not changed my mind. I was wondering the same about you, though.”
“I don’t make an offer I’m not prepared to follow through on, and my offer of marriage to you is firm, Marianne. I’m waiting anxiously to hear that the judge has arrived in town, and when he does we’ll walk over to the sheriff’s office and I’ll introduce you to him. I’m sure the mayor will make it his business to do the honors when we get there, for he’ll be on hand for the occasion. I’d thought you might ask Janet to stand by your side during the ceremony, and the mayor will stand with me. Does that suit you?”
“Of course. I’m sure Janet will be agreeable to the notion. I’ll stop by and ask her early on so’s to give her time to get ready. And in the meantime, I’ll stop by at the general store and see if there is a dress there I may purchase to wear myself. I haven’t anything fit for such an occasion, David. But I have enough money to purchase a dress, I think.”
“If you haven’t enough, I’d be happy to buy you a dress, sweetheart. May I go along?”
“Will the store be open early, do you think?”
“Janet is generally there by eight o’clock. Let’s eat quickly and take a walk over.”
“If you’ll finish feeding Joshua, I’ll fix breakfast,” Marianne offered, and with a grin, David switched places with her, holding the baby in his arms and presenting the nipple to the tiny mouth. It was an eager little boy who ate his breakfast, almost as though he knew there were plans afoot that included his presence. By the time his bottle was empty and he’d been properly burped over David’s shoulder, Marianne had made gravy from the leftover dinner, and along with fresh biscuits from the oven and the savory mixture of meat and gravy, they sat down to a veritable feast. David ate quickly, obviously anxious to be on his way, but strangely enough, Marianne seemed to have lost her appetite this morning, for she ate but half the food on her plate.
“I’m nervous,” she explained, donning her cloak, then wrapping little Joshua warmly and carrying him beneath the thick woolen garment she wore. “The wind is brisk and I don’t want him to get colic from the cold air. And I keep feeling chills down my back. Do you suppose I’m coming down with something, David?”
His grin was wide. “I think you’re having bridal nerves, Marianne. You’ll be fine once we get together with the judge and things start rolling. Just don’t change your mind on me, will you?”
She shook her head, a quick firm movement that fully expressed her thoughts, for she’d decided in the long hours of the night that living in David’s house with the handsome man as a husband might just be the best fate that could have befallen her.
They headed to the sheriff’s office, made their arrangements and then walked across the street to the general store. With a great deal of whispering and laughter, Janet and Marianne sorted through several boxes of clothing and finally selected a dress both thought would be suitable for a wedding. A session in the storeroom with David holding Joshua at the front of the store, warming them both by the potbellied stove as he waited, ended with Marianne emerging from the curtained area garbed in a shimmering white dress dotted with golden daisies and sashed with a wide ribbon of the same color.
“You look beautiful,” David said in a hushed voice, his eyes warm with a tender emotion as they scanned her form. “Just as a bride should look, Marianne. Have you spoken to Janet about what we discussed?”
Janet spoke up quickly. “Yes, she surely did, and I’d be so proud to stand by her side while she marries you, Mr. McDermott. This is the finest thing that could have happened here in Walnut Grove. What a wonderful ending to a delightful Christmas.”
It was almost noon when the small group trooped across the street to the lawman’s office and appeared at his door. The familiar figure of Judge Pearson stood from his position behind the sheriff’s desk and extended a hand toward David. “Mr.