“What cottage?” she whispered as if snared in a dream she couldn’t wake from.
He laughed and playfully nipped her nose. “Come along, darling.”
Laughing, they turned and finished the walk to the cottage.
The guest cottage was a one-story fieldstone structure tucked beneath the large, sweeping branches of a copse of oak and maple trees. It sat several yards away from the creek that ran through her father’s property. A front porch made of stone and oak and trimmed with white railings looked inviting with its two wooden rocking chairs. Windows with bright white trim sat beneath a shingled roof and flanked a stone chimney. No smoke rose from it tonight, though, for it was too warm outside for a fire. Colorful flowers in bright reds and pinks covered the well-manicured beds that surrounded the porch and butted up against the wooden lattice beneath the porch.
Nancy stopped in the yard for a moment, dropping her skirts and eyeing the small glade. “I’d forgotten how peaceful it is in this quiet corner of Daddy’s property.”
Hal slipped his arms around her from behind. “This guesthouse is larger than our home.”
She angled her head to see him. “Not quite, but we might get some good ideas here about adding more room to our own home. The cottage has a lovely loft.”
His lips pursed. “The pitch on our roof isn’t steep enough for a loft. But I could build us a loft bedchamber in the barn.”
She laughed. “Captain would love that.”
They were in no hurry to move, both of them seeming to enjoy a quiet moment to simply breathe.
“Is this the field where you and your cousin raced your father’s horses?”
“It is,” she said, grinning at the memory.
Hal chuckled. “Why is it that I no longer find it so hard to picture you racing through the fields with reckless abandon?”
“Perhaps it’s because you know my true nature now?”
“You mean because I’ve learned that you’re willful and daring and sassy?” he asked. “Yes, perhaps that’s why I can easily see you disobeying your father and racing the wind on your horse.”
“You don’t sound disappointed by that revelation.”
“That passionate spirit is what I love about you,” he said, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.
Nancy stood there wrapped in his arms for a long while. The shadows were lengthening and the pinks and oranges of the sky were being consumed by twilight.
With Hal’s hand at her back, they entered the cottage.
Polished wood floors and natural oak walls with exposed overhead beams greeted them. On the opposite wall, a huge field-stone fireplace stretched to the ceiling. Polished pewter candlesticks sat on either side of the large portrait of a Tremont ancestor that hung over the fireplace.
She looked at Hal who was taking in the cottage with a bit of amazement. “Do you know that I used to step completely into the fireplace when I played here as a child,” she said.
He eyed the massive fireplace. “I don’t doubt you could or that you did, although I’d certainly not encourage it. Please don’t share that with our children when we visit.”
The thought of staying here with her husband and children while visiting her family brought a sense of peace and healing to Nancy's heart.
She could already imagine her dark-haired boys darting around the two high back wing chairs that sat to one side of the fireplace or playing with their toys at the small round side table between them. Opposite the chairs was a cushioned high back sofa which Nancy knew was quite comfortable from the numerous naps she’d taken here as a child. But no one would be sleeping on the couch tonight, she knew that for sure. Nancy looked forward to snuggling with Hal on that sofa on a future visits to see her parents. The idea that she could actually visit her family now, and that they in turn could come to visit her, filled her with joy.
“Gads! There’s even a kitchen here,” Hal said, gesturing to a small stove and sideboard in the far corner of the room. “This is all quite spectacular.” He pointed to a wide-rung ladder. “I suspect that leads up to the loft? Is that where we’ll be sleeping?”
“Yes it leads to the loft, but we’ll be sleeping in the bedroom tucked beneath the loft. You can peek inside. I think you’ll like the four-post canopy bed and appreciate the carving in the headboard,” she told him.
He took a quick look and agreed that the quality of the carving was very good and that the bed looked quite comfortable.
“Hal, would you please open some windows? It’s dreadfully stuffy in here,” she said. “While the cottage airs we can go sit by the creek while it cools off inside.”
“Good plan.” He hung his coat over one of the chairs and set about opening the windows. He crossed to the fireplace and opened the windows on either side as well. A refreshing breeze blew through the room as Hal removed his tie and unbuttoned his collar.
Nancy hurried to the bedroom and opened the chest at the foot of the bed, pulling out a red and blue brightly colored quilt before closing the lid.
Quilt in hand, she and Hal headed outside. She led the way to the creek, and as soon as they spread the quilt on the creek bank they sat with a sigh. “Did you know that this creek meanders like a serpent all the way to Lake Erie?” she asked.
Hal cocked his head. “That right? Well, did you know that Canadaway Creek empties into Lake Erie as well?”
“I didn’t, but I find the similarity rather ironic and intriguing.”
Hal leaned back on his hands and stretched his long legs out in front of him. Side-by-side they sat on the blanket in comfortable silence, listening to the babbling creek as night fell and moonlight cast a soft golden glow across the field.
“I have to tell you that Captain has been asking after you ever since you left,” Hal said, breaking the silence. “He took up permanent residence on my workbench and refused to speak to me again until I brought you home. He misses you.”
Nancy laughed. Then she sighed. “I’ve missed you and Captain and our house so much, Hal, I honestly thought my heart would break in two halves. I can’t wait to get back to Captain and our cozy little home.”
Hal scrunched his face as if he’d just gotten caught dipping his spoon in the stew pot before supper. “I’m afraid our cozy house is a disaster at the moment. And I may as well confess that I haven’t picked any vegetables or pulled a single weed in our garden either. I’m sorry, Nancy, but I just couldn’t bear to set foot in it. All I could see when I looked at all those green leaves is you kneeling in the middle of all those plants… And when you weren’t there it was... unbearable. I’m sorry.”
Nancy bit her lip but couldn’t hold back her laughter. “Oh, Hal, I know about the garden. Mary sent me a letter and told me the weeds were overtaking the plants. And I have to tell you, I cried over it. I cried on my sister’s shoulder about the fact that my garden had weeds. How silly is that?”
Hal clasped her hand. “It’s not silly. You worked so hard on that garden and I’m ashamed that I let it go. I will clean my mess in the house and help you tend the weeds in the garden as soon as we get back home.”
“You have your own work to do, and I’m eager to take up my chores again. I miss them. I miss knowing I’ve accomplished something at day’s end. But do you know what I missed most of all?”
“What?”
“I missed looking after and loving you and Captain.”
With a groan, Hal wrapped his arm around Nancy and drew her against him. “I can’t express how empty life was without you, darling. All I can say is I never want to live without you again.”
She leaned into him, drawing strength and comfort from his words. Still, there was one question remaining that simply wouldn’t leave her alone. “Hal, there is something that I need to know,” she said, but she was afraid of the answer, and she didn’t know how to ask the question. She lowered her gaze to their clasped hands searching for words. She was afraid to ask, afraid of what she might see in her husband’s eyes. But she forced he
rself to look... and to ask. “What would you have done if my father had been guilty of treating your father unfairly? Would you have wanted to stay married to me? After everything that happened?”
“Is that what’s had you worried?” Hal asked, disappointment in his voice. “I came to Buffalo to get you before I knew the truth. I had decided that I couldn’t live another minute of my life without you.” He placed his finger under her chin so he could look into her eyes. “I was hurt and needed time to get my thoughts sorted and my feelings untangled. But there is nothing in this world more important than you. Not one thing, Nancy. I just needed to know that you loved me in return and to make sure there were no more secrets between us.”
She let out the breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “The only thing between us is love, Hal. I will love you always and forever.”
“As I will love you.” He leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her lips.
She drew back and smiled. “Would it be terribly inappropriate of me to remove my shoes?”
He grinned and reached for her foot. “No, darling. In fact, that’s a grand idea. I’ll remove mine, too.” He helped her off with her shoes and then removed his own.
She tried to imagine doing this with Stuart and burst out laughing.
Hal arched a quizzical eyebrow. “Are you laughing at my big feet?”
“Gracious, no!” she said. “I just had the most absurd thought.” She told him about Stuart and how mortified he would be by her behavior. “I’m so grateful I can be at ease with you. It’s divine to play and love and be myself with you.”
“I will admit that you shock me on occasion.”
She leaned in and nibbled his bottom lip. “You like it.”
“I love it,” he said, pulling her into the warmth of his arms.
And as they snuggled in the moonlight on the bank of the bucolic creek there were no secrets between them, only love, passion, and the promise of forever.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Two days later, Hal and Nancy returned to Fredonia. For the first time, Hal’s trip to Fredonia felt like he was coming home instead of running away from something. He had finally buried the demons surrounding his father’s circumstances and his brother’s death, and he could now enjoy building a life here in Fredonia with the woman he loved at his side.
“Are you ready to go inside?” he asked. And before Nancy could answer, Hal carried his bride into their little home in Fredonia. He never thought to be crossing this threshold with such a feeling of joy in heart. He had never even considered that he would be crossing this threshold with his wife in his arms. Until Nancy came into his life, the house had simply been a place where he and John Radford would camp out between work hours. After John’s death, it had become a cavern of grief. But Nancy had brought light and love into his house and made it a home. For Hal, for them both, and for Captain who was at his heels yowling for attention.
Hal twirled his bride in a slow circle, loving how her laughter filled the foyer. The instant he set Nancy on her feet, Captain paddled her skirt with his paws and demanded the affection he had been denied for nearly a month.
“Hello, baby boy,” Nancy said, lifting the demanding little tiger into her arms. She hugged him to her chest. “I missed you so much, sweetheart.” She buried her face in his fur, talking to him, hugging him, loving him in a way that made Hal’s sinuses sting.
Captain rooted in her neck, kneading with his paws and pushing and trying to get closer until Nancy laughed and kissed his furry head.
Unable to help himself, Hal scratched Captain’s ears and said, “You’re beginning to embarrass yourself, young man.”
Nancy whispered to Captain, “Your father was exactly the same way, so don’t listen to a word he says.”
Hal laughed, loving her sense of humor and his unexpected and deeply desired family. “Welcome home, Nancy.”
“It’s so unbelievably good to be here!” she said, her wide smile confirming her words. “I can’t wait to tend to my chores. I’ll have the house in order and the garden cleaned in no time.”
Hal laughed. “This from the woman who thought she would be directing a staff and who couldn’t build a fire when she first arrived?”
She arched a haughty brow. “I’ve learned a thing or two since coming here, you know.”
“And what might that be?” he joked, knowing full well the many important things she learned and skills she’d acquired.
But instead of teasing him, her smile faded and her eyes grew serious. “I’ve learned that in risking everything, I was able to find the love of my life.”
Hal drew her into his arms and kissed her, but was shortly interrupted by sharp claws piercing his chest. “Ow, Captain, you little rascal!”
Nancy grinned. “I guess Captain is telling me to get him some supper and get busy with unpacking.” She lowered Captain to his favorite sleeping spot on the bench.
“They’ll be plenty of time for your chores, Nancy. There is something else in this house that has missed your touch.”
“The stove?” she asked.
Hal laughed. “Yes, definitely, but also your pianoforte. Would you play a song for me and bring some music back to our home?”
“I would love to!” she said, rushing to the parlor. “She ran her hands over the instrument. “I missed this old out-of-tune darling so much I couldn’t bring myself to play for my father.”
Hal watched as Nancy sat on the bench and placed her fingers on the keys. He bit his lip to hold back a smile. He couldn’t wait for her to play her first note.
With a saucy smile, Nancy ran her fingers up the keyboard as she used to do in jest, making them laugh when she’d hit the badly tuned keys. But this time the keys rang out in perfect tune filling the house with beautiful music. Nancy turned to him in surprise, her smile illuminating the room, her eyes glistening with tears. “Did you figure out how to tune this?”
Hal shook his head.
“You hired someone to tune it?”
He nodded. “Please don’t stop. I’ve longed to hear you play on a tuned instrument.”
Although she faltered briefly, Nancy continued to the end, finishing the song with a happy flourish and tears in her eyes.
She stood and threw her arms around him. “Thank you for such a meaningful gift. I can’t express how much I love this. But I worry that you spent money on something unnecessary when we have so little to spare.”
“It wasn’t unnecessary, Nancy. You deserve this. And hearing you play is a gift to me.” Hal eased back to look at her. “This will mean, however, that we will have to wait awhile before I can purchase a feather filled tick for our bed, I’m afraid. We’ll have to suffer a while without one.”
A smile tilted Nancy’s mouth. “I do believe that I’ll need a rocking chair and a cradle before I need a new mattress.”
Hal looked at her, momentarily confused. But then he saw in her eyes what she was telling him.
“Really?” He asked, emotions of love and joy and disbelief all tangled together.
“Yes, Mr. Grayson,” she said. “You are going to be a father next spring.”
Hal’s throat tightened and he choked up, completely and utterly overwhelmed by his love for his wife and their unborn child. He glanced at her flat belly where their child was growing. He placed his hand over her stomach and she covered it with her own. And for that moment he stood in wonder, realizing he was holding his wife and child.
Hal gazed into Nancy’s beautiful brown eyes and said, “I think I’d like a little girl with your fiery spirit, your stubbornness, your loving heart and beautiful red hair.”
“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but we are having a son. And he’s going to be tall and dashing like his father. And he will be named after his uncle, John Radford.”
Completely undone by her words and her news, Hal pulled his wife into his arms, unable to speak. Tears filled his eyes. He would always feel the loss of his brother, but Nancy had shown him
how to move past grief and find love. In all of his grand plans for his life, he never once dreamed his heart could hold so much joy and love or that he would know such deep contentment as he held his wife and child in his arms.
Epilogue
Five Months Later
Nancy placed two loaves of baked bread on the kitchen sideboard and sighed, thankful that job was done. She placed her hands on the small of her back and arched backward, her belly protruding as she did. She wasn’t sure how she would survive the last three months of this pregnancy. She already felt huge and her hands and feet were starting to swell. Feeling a nudge to her side, just under her ribs, she rubbed her hand over her belly, settling the foot or elbow that insisted on protruding. “Settle down, sweetheart. You have a while yet before it’s time for you to begin your own story.”
Nancy went to the foyer, scrubbed a peep hole in the frosty window pane, and peered outside at the snow covered orchard. The snow had been falling for several days, only letting up yesterday evening and allowing the bright moon to shine off the fresh snow. This evening was clear, and it was bitter cold outside. Even Captain, ever the fearless adventurer, had stayed close to home during the past few days while the storm had buried the fields and roads in snow. Nancy was content to stay inside. In her present condition, she was happy to bundle herself in her home and sit in front of a warm fire.
Loud stomping outside drew her attention to the steps. She’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t even seen Hal leave the barn. But he was outside, climbing the steps and struggling with a piece of furniture.
She opened the door and he carried a beautiful rocking chair inside. He set it down in the foyer as she closed the door, shutting out the cold and blowing snow off the porch.
“Whew, it’s bitter out there,” Hal said as she shook the blown snow off his hair. He removed his coat and hung it on a hook before wrapping Nancy up in a hug. “Warm me up. I’m freezing.”
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