Micah Barton cleared his throat from the front of the church. It was louder than usual; people were laughing and catching up, not settling into their seats. He coughed, hoping everyone would settle down, but no one seemed to hear him.
Jed Thorn put his hands in his mouth and whistled loudly. The talking came to a halt, and people turned to stare at him. Jed gestured at Micah. “The man’s trying to speak!”
Micah smiled gratefully at his brother-in-law. Everyone took their seats, and Micah began the service. “Today is a special day in our church. We welcome one of our returning members, Abner Phelps. Abner was injured in an accident recently, but thanks to his incredible wife, Catherine, he’s back with us today. Welcome back, Abner.”
“Thanks, Pastor!” Abner called, slipping his arm around his wife. Everyone laughed.
Micah continued with the service. Catherine looked around the church. For as scared as she had been when she’d first moved to Nowhere, she now felt calm and at peace.
The people of Nowhere had welcomed her with open arms, and now she counted many of them friends. Katie and Hope had visited her regularly during Abner’s recovery. Now that Abner was about to return to work, Catherine had promised to visit them in their own homes, too.
It seemed like most of the people she met were connected in some way to Edna Petunia and Cletus Sanders. The eccentric couple had been kind and generous during Abner’s recovery, often visiting or sending one of their relatives with a hot meal. Catherine looked forward to getting to know them even better.
Best of all was her relationship with Abner. Once she had let go of her preconceived notions of marriage, she and Abner had truly started to enjoy themselves. It didn’t matter if the table was set perfectly or the quilts were folded neatly. All that mattered was that they were kind and true to one another.
As Micah concluded the service, Abner squeezed Catherine’s hand. They went outside, where people continued to come up to Abner and Catherine and tell them how happy they were to see them in church.
Abner kissed Catherine on the cheek. “I have to talk to Tom about something. Will you stay here?”
Catherine was confused, but nodded. “That’s fine.”
Abner walked off toward Tom, and the two men began to confer. Katie came up to Catherine and gave her a big hug. “I’m so glad to see you!”
“I’m glad to see you, too,” Catherine agreed. “It’s a beautiful day.”
“Yes, it is. I can’t wait to have you and Abner over for dinner,” Katie said.
“That sounds lovely!” Catherine smiled. Her new friends were so thoughtful and kind. “It’s a relief to get back to normal.”
“I can imagine,” Katie replied.
Just then, Catherine heard hoofbeats. Perplexed, she turned her head. Abner led a gorgeous chestnut-brown horse toward her at a brisk trot. When they were close enough, Catherine rubbed the beautiful horse on its neck softly. “Who is this?”
“Do you remember on the first day we met, you said you enjoyed horses?” Abner asked.
Catherine flushed. “I had almost forgotten about that.”
“To thank you for everything you’ve done in my recovery, I bought this horse from Tom. She’s yours,” Abner said, beaming.
Catherine’s eyes filled with tears. She threw her arms around Abner. “Oh, thank you, Abner! She’s perfect!” She stroked the horse’s mane. “I think I’ll call her Chestnut.” Horses had brought such joy to Catherine’s childhood before the fire. She was so glad that Chestnut would be part of her new life in Nowhere with Abner.
Edna Petunia came up to the horse and admired Chestnut’s beauty. “Well done, Abner! Looks like your bride is happy as can be.”
“She deserves more than this,” Abner replied. “I owe everything to Catherine.”
Edna Petunia coughed. “Aren’t you forgetting someone?”
Catherine and Abner laughed. “We both owe you as well, Edna Petunia.” Catherine smiled.
“I never imagined I could be this happy,” Abner remarked. “All those years of chasing young women . . . well, you can safely say those days are over.”
“I should hope so!” Catherine swatted at Abner playfully. Catherine was just happy that everything had worked out in the end. She knew she didn’t have to worry about him anymore.
“I must say, you two have exceeded my expectations,” Edna Petunia remarked. She had never imagined Abner looking as fine as he did today, and Catherine was practically bursting with joy.
“You’re a regular matchmaker,” Cletus agreed. “I’m proud of you, honey.” He kissed his wife on the lips. Katie rolled her eyes at Catherine, but Catherine thought it was sweet. She hoped that her and Abner’s love would be that strong when they were that age.
“You really do have a knack for this, Edna Petunia,” Abner said. “We should start calling you ‘Madame Matchmaker!’”
“Hm,” Edna Petunia sighed. “That has a nice ring to it . . .”
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Abner's Adventure Page 9
