by Jaclyn Hardy
“No, I think it still has to cook a little bit longer. The beans aren’t quite as soft as I’d like.”
Joshua sighed. “All right. The rain has stopped, so I will go outside and work. I’ll be in near sundown.”
“Sounds good.” Charlotte set down her spoon. “How did you clear the area for the house if you don’t have a plow?”
“I picked the clearest spot and put my house there.” Joshua laughed. “If you need anything, I’ll be right outside.”
Charlotte waved and went back to her weaving. Joshua slipped on his shoes and a warmer coat and went outside. It was still wet and slick, but he hoped that meant it would be easier to clear out the dead brush. Then he could work on the bigger bushes when he had the plow.
The sun had finally come from behind the clouds, and it was warm on Joshua’s neck as he worked to clear a space for a garden. It was hard work, but the rhythm of pulling weeds and bushes was gratifying. Slowly a space opened up enough that he was able to make rows. He thought of doing the planting himself, but Charlotte had been the one to want it.
He set his shovel against the house and patted Louie’s neck as he walked by. “Soon we will have a place for you.”
Louie whinnied and brushed his nose against Joshua’s cheek. Minnie was a little less forgiving, but finally gave in and let Joshua get close to her. He wiped her down, then checked on Betsy. He would have to milk her soon, but she would be okay until after dinner.
Joshua peeked inside the house. “Charlotte? Come. I have something to show you.”
Charlotte glanced over at the stove. “But the beans might burn.”
“Set them on the table then. They should be done by now anyway.” Joshua waited outside the door so he wouldn’t have to take his shoes off again.
Charlotte moved the food over to the table and wiped her hands on a dish cloth. She slipped her shoes on and went outside. “What is it?”
Joshua couldn’t help grinning as he took her hand and led her to the garden patch. “It’s not much and we will have more once the land is cleared, but this is where you can plant and care for a garden.”
Charlotte grinned and clapped her hands with excitement. “This is perfect. Do we have seeds for it?”
“Only potatoes so far. We forgot to buy others when we were at the store earlier. We will have to see what they have when we go buy the plow tomorrow.” Joshua placed his hands on his hips. “This way we can have our own food to store for the winter.”
“I’ll get started on that tomorrow. I’m not sure we’d be able to see much if we started tonight.” Charlotte tugged on his hand. “For now, let’s eat and then get some sleep. It’s going to be a big day.”
Who was Charlotte kidding when she said she could grow a garden? This dirt was hard and tough to break apart, and it still had roots from the sage brush. Still, Joshua had cleared this space for her, and she was determined to make it work. She would hopefully get at least a few of the vegetables that she’d planted over the last few days.
Joshua was off in the distance using the new plow they bought. It took both Minnie and Louie to pull it, but the work went so much faster. If things continued like they had been, there would be enough room for a barn by the next day. And then it would be time to actually build it.
Charlotte wiped her brow and stood, cringing at the mud on her dress, and the ache in her back.
Dinner would need to be started soon, and the laundry had to be brought in. Her makeshift clothesline had been replaced by another one outside. This way they could dry faster, and she loved the way they smelled when she brought them inside. She rinsed her hands and pulled the clothes off the line
Charlotte went into the house and pulled out the last of the pork to cut it into pieces. The stove was a little colder than she’d like, so she added just a couple of smaller pieces of wood to the flame. That had been an adventure by itself. Joshua was a lot more patient with her burnt or undercooked food than what she deserved, but it was frustrating that she was still struggling.
A knock came at the door, making Charlotte jump. They had very few visitors since she got here, and they were all there to talk to Joshua or to help clear the land. Charlotte brushed the hair out of her face and wiped her hands. She hadn’t had a chance to change her dress either. Mother and Father would have been horrified if they knew she was dressed like this for company.
Eleanor stood on the doorstep with her hair done up and her dress neatly pressed. Her eyes widened. “Oh, you poor thing. I knew things would be hard the first few days, but it appears as though half your land is on your dress.”
“Not quite half. Most of the land is too hard to do much with.” Charlotte stepped back. “Come in.”
“I apologize for coming without any notice. Edmond had to meet his great aunt at the stagecoach stop and I asked if he would drop me off here. She’s a dreadful woman, and I want to spend as little time with her as possible.” Eleanor untied her sun hat and hung it on the coat rack that Joshua had put up the night before.
Charlotte laughed. “I think most great aunts are that way. And I’m so glad you’re here. I could use the company.”
Eleanor studied the room. “It gets awfully quiet during the day, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, it does.” Charlotte went back to making dinner. “How is life in town?”
“Everyone is preparing for the Fourth of July celebration. I do hope you’ll come for it.”
Charlotte nodded. “Joshua and I were thinking of selling some things during the celebration. We need a few more items for around the house, and money is tight.”
Eleanor came around into the kitchen and picked up the onion on the counter. “Do you need this as well?”
“Yes. I’m hoping I don’t burn anything tonight. I’d like it to have the flavor of onions and herbs and not charcoal.”
“I can help with that.” Eleanor chopped the onions, her small hands moving quickly. “You have made this home quite lovely in your time here.”
Charlotte glanced over at her in surprise. “You’ve been here before?”
“Yes, Betsy out there was our cow. We brought her out and Joshua fed us dinner.” She leaned in. “If you ask me, any flavor would be better than the bland food he served that night.”
“Well, I did have to tell him to buy herbs when we went into town the other day.” Charlotte scooped up the pork to put it into the pan.
Eleanor stepped between Charlotte and the stove. “Wait. You need lard first or it will burn to the pan.”
She went through the cupboards until she found the block of lard Joshua had used and set it on the counter.
“I’d never used that before, so I’ve just been using leftover grease from the meals before.” Charlotte sighed.
“Joshua didn’t tell you this was here?” Eleanor cut off a few pieces and dropped them into the pan.
Charlotte’s face burned. “He’s used it, but I thought it might just be for the flavor. But then he mentioned butter and the topic never came back up. Even after I filled the whole house with smoke.”
“Ah yes. I remember that story.” Eleanor slid the onions in the pan.
“Did I at least heat the stove right?” Charlotte stirred the sizzling onions.
Eleanor nodded. “It looks good so far. You don’t want to add too much or it will burn.”
Charlotte laughed. “I learned that the hard way. Okay, so now that we have that going, I need to add the pork, carrots, potatoes, and water. I’m hoping to make some soup, but we’ll see how it goes.”
“It may not taste quite the same without broth, but we can do our best to make it work. Now, let’s chop and you can tell me what you have been doing over the last few days.” Eleanor took the carrots from the counter and chopped while Charlotte worked on the potatoes.
“Not much has happened. We got a plow, so work is moving faster. I finally learned how to milk Betsy, and we’ve managed to survive my cooking. Oh, and I have a garden now.” Charlotte gestured to the backya
rd. “It’s not much, but it will hopefully get us through the winter.”
Eleanor left the counter to look out the window. “That’s a good size. You had that many seeds?”
“We had to make do with what we had. We planted some of our potatoes by cutting them into chunks. We’ll see if that works. And then we planted beans and peas from our storage. Joshua was able to buy carrot seeds, but the rest of the money went to the plow.” Charlotte dropped the potatoes into the pot and sighed. “I think we let the onions burn.”
Eleanor peeked into the pot and laughed. “Oh dear. Our talking seems to have messed with our cooking. But it will be fine. Just add the water and then it should be all right.”
Charlotte took a bucket out to the water can on the back porch and filled it with water. Joshua waved at her from the field, so she waved back. He worked so hard for them. She just wished that she could do as much for him as he did for her.
It took another trip before there was enough water for soup. The house smelled wonderful from the onions and pork—even though they were slightly burned—and Charlotte was sure that she finally had something besides beans they could enjoy.
“How about some bread?” Eleanor asked.
“Uh, maybe not. I need to get the hang of the stove and oven before I even attempt something like that.”
Eleanor opened a cupboard. “Well, then we’ll have to learn, won’t we?”
Charlotte helped pull out the ingredients for bread and then they mixed it together. They found the yeast in a cupboard and started it rising. Charlotte had been putting off making bread because she wasn’t sure how it worked, and she could have hugged Eleanor for coming to help.
Once the dough was mixed, both women took a portion of it and kneaded it until it was ready to bake. Charlotte formed her dough into what resembled a loaf like her cook made back home, and Eleanor shaped hers into a round ball.
“While the bread rises, you can show me what you planned to sell at the celebration.” Eleanor wiped her hands on a towel. Her once clean and pressed dress was now spotted with flour, and her hair looked a little more like Charlotte’s because of working so close to the stove.
“There’s not much. We have a lot more work to do, but I have some rugs and things that I made, and Joshua has his wooden figurines. Tomorrow we will go into the mountains to try to find berries so I can attempt to make jam.”
Eleanor brightened. “That sounds wonderful. Do you think I could possibly tag along? It would keep me away from Edmond’s great aunt, and I love going up into the mountains.”
Charlotte shrugged. “I don’t see why not. I’m sure Joshua wouldn’t mind.”
“Wonderful. I shall tell Edmond when he arrives to pick me up.” Eleanor glanced out the window, her smile dropping. “It appears that he arrived sooner than I’d hoped.”
“Will you two stay for dinner at least? And your great aunt. You helped me make the food. It’s only fair that you stay and help eat it as well.”
Eleanor hugged Charlotte and brushed off the flour from her dress the best she could. “I would love to stay, but we have food waiting for us at home. Perhaps we can stay after our trip to the mountains tomorrow.”
“I would like that very much.” Charlotte glanced at the dough. “Can you at least help me put the bread into the oven before you go? I have no idea how to do that, and I really don’t want to burn it.”
Eleanor picked up the pan with the bread and slid it into the oven. “Some people use one of the smaller compartments above, but I like to use the main oven. You may need to add a little more wood to the fire. A few smaller pieces of wood should do the trick.”
“Thank you.” Charlotte put away the loom she’d been working on and cleared the table.
“I shall hopefully see you tomorrow. If I’m not here by breakfast, assume that we weren’t able to make it.” Eleanor put her hat back on and tied the ribbon under her chin. “How do I look?”
Charlotte pointed at some flour that Eleanor had missed. “Get rid of that and she’ll never know you were helping me cook the entire time you were here . . . you’re sure you don’t want to stay?”
Eleanor laughed. “I would love to, but I really must get back.”
Charlotte opened the door to find a handsome man with thick dark hair standing there. “Thank you for allowing your wife to come. She was a lifesaver.”
Edmond smiled. “It was my pleasure. She doesn’t get out nearly as often as she should, so when she asked to come here, I couldn’t say no.”
Eleanor slipped her arm through his. “You know it’s because I just want to spend time with you.”
“I do. Now let’s hurry before Aunt Margaret decides to come and invade poor Charlotte’s house.” Edmond nodded toward Charlotte and then guided Eleanor to the coach.
Charlotte sighed as Eleanor left. It had been really nice to have her around. The house was too quiet otherwise. A glance at the setting sun told her that Joshua would be in soon. She went out to get some more water to heat so she could wash the dishes they used, then stared at the oven, wondering how long the bread was supposed to bake. She was determined to make sure this meal was just right.
***
Joshua leaned back in his chair and groaned. “I haven’t had food this good in months, if not years. You and Eleanor outdid yourselves.”
“Thank you.” Charlotte cleared the dishes from the table and put them in the sink, smiling at the compliment. She’d done it. The bread had been perfect, and the soup actually had some pretty good flavor to it. “Are we set to go berry picking tomorrow?”
“I got the last of the land cleared for the barn, so yes, we can go.” Joshua wrapped his arms around her from the back and he nuzzled her neck. “Thank you for a wonderful dinner.”
Charlotte turned to pull him into a hug. “You’re welcome. I’m just thrilled I didn’t burn anything.”
Joshua caressed her cheek. “I was getting used to the burnt taste. But now that you made this, I can’t wait to see what else you can do.”
“Uh, okay. But for now, let’s just celebrate that I made this dinner right.” Charlotte kissed him, enjoying the feel of his arms around her. She laid her head against his chest. “I’m exhausted.”
“You had a busy day. We both did. I saw the garden. You did a beautiful job. I’m just hoping that we can protect it from the animals in the area.”
Charlotte stepped back. “There are wild animals around here?”
“Of course.” Joshua ticked off animals on his fingers as he named them. “We have foxes, muskrats, skunks. Any of those would love to get ahold of the vegetables in your garden. We’ll have to set traps.”
The thought of trapping animals was enough to turn her stomach, but Charlotte and Joshua needed the vegetables in her garden. They were already running low on the vegetables that Joshua had stored away.
“You’re sure we can’t just try to catch them and let them go somewhere else?”
“I wish it were that easy, but they would just come back to their homes. As we clear out the land, they’ll be driven away from the house, and then your garden won’t have any pest issues.”
Charlotte doubted that was true, but nodded anyway. “Have you seen any muskrats or anything around here?”
“I may have angered a few rabbits and a family of foxes with my plow today. They’ll find somewhere else to live, but they weren’t happy with me tonight.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened. “You saw foxes? This close?”
“Right out to the west of us, yes. Right now you like the idea, but when we get chickens, that will be bad news.”
“Chickens? We’re getting chickens?” Charlotte grinned. “I’ve always wanted to raise chickens.”
Joshua tipped his head to the side. “You have? I didn’t know they’d allow chickens into the city.”
“Which is why I always wanted them.” Charlotte looked around for a bag or something to wrap the bread in and found the papers their groceries had come in. She laid o
ne out and wrapped up the loaves, making sure it was tight enough. The rounded bread that Eleanor made seemed like it worked better in the oven. She would have to remember that for the next time.
Joshua took Charlotte’s hand. “Come. You can finish in a moment. I want to show you something.”
Intrigued, Charlotte followed Joshua outside, curious as to why he would need two blankets. He laid one out on the ground, then wrapped the other one around them. Joshua sat down, pulling Charlotte with him.
“You have seen the sky at night in the city, but have you ever seen this?” Joshua pointed up and Charlotte gasped.
She’d never seen anything like it because of the lights of the city. Here there was nothing to keep them from seeing all of the stars. She’d seen pictures of what it looked like before, but that was nowhere near as breathtaking as the view in front of her. A meteor shot across the sky, leaving a trail behind it.
“This is amazing.” Charlotte snuggled in closer to Joshua to avoid the chilly air. It had cooled quite a bit since she’d been outside earlier, but she didn’t want to go in. Not yet.
“I know that this life hasn’t been easy for you. I’ve seen how upset you are when the food burns, or when something goes wrong while planting the garden. But you’ve done a wonderful job learning how to care for our home.”
Charlotte propped her head up on her hand so she could see him better. “Thank you. Hopefully you’ve seen at least some improvement.”
“Every day.” Joshua ran his fingers through her messy bun and brought her close for a kiss.
Charlotte jerked away a moment later as something moved in the brush nearby. “What was that?”
Joshua sat up, laughing. “Probably one of the animals you were so excited to see. We’d better go in. If one is awake, the others will be soon.”
As much as she loved the idea of the animals living around here, she didn’t really want to run into a fox in the middle of the night. They stood and grabbed the other blanket before running inside. The warmth from the fire helped immediately. She wished they had some hot chocolate handy, but that was most likely a delicacy this far away from any big cities.
