The Preacher's Bride: A Golden Valley Story (Brides of Birch Creek Book 6)

by Laura D. Bastian

  “I now pronounce you husband and wife,” Mr. Poulton said. He smiled at the two of them and nodded. “You may now kiss your bride.”

  Benjamin had always just felt humor or a little bit of impatience at times when he had said those words for the couples he’d married. Now that they were directed at him toward the woman who was now his wife by law and by God’s graces, he wasn’t sure exactly what to do.

  Amelia lifted her chin and leaned toward him just a little, making it easy enough for him to bend down to kiss her. He hadn’t kissed a girl in ages, not since he’d decided to devote himself to the Church. His whole intention was to just give her a quick kiss and pull away, but the softness of her lips against his own was a pleasant surprise. He found himself lingering there and understanding why most of the kisses to seal a marriage were as involved as they often became.

  Of course, it wouldn’t do for a preacher to display too much public affection so he reluctantly pulled back from the kiss. He forced himself to meet her eyes, not wanting to act embarrassed about their kiss. The look in her eyes made him wish he could return for another kiss. That realization surprised him and he wasn’t sure what to do with that newly revealed truth about himself.

  The music from the piano began again and the folks at the wedding stood and cheered for them. Then, like they all knew what to do, the guests began to file out of the building while a few of the men picked up the benches and worked their way to the door of the church and down the stairs to finish the set up for the celebration.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Morrison,” Mr. Poulton said. “If you would both sign this, then I can finish this up and be on my way.”

  “Thank you so much for coming on short notice,” Amelia said. “I’m grateful you took the time to come help us.”

  “It’s been a pleasure,” Mr. Poulton said. “It’s not that often I get to perform the wedding of a fellow brother of the church. I’m happy for the both of you and wish you all the best.”

  “I hope you have time to stay for some lunch before you leave. It’s one of the traditions here in Birch Creek that I’ve come to enjoy thoroughly,” Benjamin said. He wasn’t sure why he felt the need to keep the preacher close. Maybe it would help him think less about his new wife and that sweet kiss they’d shared. He would have to get that out of his mind as soon as possible.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Amelia waited patiently for Benjamin to take her hand, or even offer his arm so they could walk out of the church together. Instead, he seemed a little preoccupied as he tried to convince the preacher to stay for lunch. Benjamin didn’t even look at Amelia and she wondered if he was as affected by their kiss and the fact they were married. She’d always thought him a good person, and had even at one time in her youth found herself fancying him and wishing he’d pay her some attention. That simple kiss had set her heart alight and she’d found a bit of hope that there was something special between them. Now, though, only moments later, he was practically ignoring her.

  She would do well to calm her own emotions and keep her head and thoughts more level. The sounds of more benches being moved made Amelia turn to look out the open doors. Not wanting to keep their hosts outside waiting, Amelia placed her hand on Benjamin’s arm and smiled sweetly.

  “We’d love to have you join us, Mr. Poulton,” Amelia said. “Besides, it wouldn’t be very kind of us to send you on your way without a meal.”

  “Well, all right,” Mr. Poulton said. “I’d be happy to join you.”

  As the other preacher began to walk, Benjamin turned to follow, but when he looked down at her hand on his arm, he adjusted his pace and walked with her by his side. He didn’t quite hold her arm the way she’d expected or hoped, but it made sense that he wouldn’t be used to walking with a woman. There would be a lot of adjustments for both of them.

  The crowd who’d been inside the chapel with them cheered and whooped and hollered as they exited the building and walked down the stairs. They were led to the perfect spot under the shade of one of the large cottonwood trees and given two plates then shown to the front of the line at the tables filled with an impressive array of food items.

  Amelia released her hold on Benjamin and dished up some food, complimenting the way everything looked so inviting.

  “I sure hope everyone will be willing to share recipes,” Amelia said. “I do all right in the kitchen, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything as delicious as all this before me.”

  The women who were standing near the tables of food all promised to share their recipes and tricks and an easy conversation flowed between them all.

  “Bessy was the one who taught me how to make bread,” one woman said.

  “I couldn’t make pie crust worth holding beans until Elizabeth walked me through it,” another said.

  “When I first arrived, the only thing I knew how to make was a rather poor attempt at stew,” Annabelle said. “I was ever so grateful that Mrs. Howard took me under her wing and showed me how to feed her son.”

  A few of the men laughed and one patted Benjamin on the shoulder. “Sounds like you’ll be well fed, Reverend. Once all these fine women teach your wife their tricks, you’ll eat better than anyone here.”

  “I’ve always been well fed,” Benjamin said, nodding with appreciation to all the folks around them. “The good people of Birch Creek have taken good care of me, and I thank you all for that.”

  “Well now you’ll have someone to cook for you every night and not have to wonder who might invite you over.” A tall man with a dark beard laughed.

  Benjamin chuckled. “That will be rather nice.” He met Amelia’s eyes then and a flash of something went through his own eyes. Was it appreciation? Anticipation? Was it only for the fact she would cook for him?

  Oh how she wished she knew what he was thinking and how to be the kind of wife he could come to love as a woman and not just as a cook or housekeeper.

  As she took her now full plate with her to the table that had been set up for them in another lovely shaded area, she remembered something her mother had said. “The way to win a man’s affection was to feed him well.” Since she was decent in the kitchen and now had the option to learn a lot more dishes to try, she had a little hope things would work out all right.

  ***

  Benjamin had worried at first he would feel completely out of sorts as the town’s folk came to offer congratulations, but most were happy to address Amelia instead of him which allowed him to sit back and watch his new wife.

  “I’m pleased to meet you,” Amelia said to the Chism family. “Did I hear right that you provided the raspberry preserves?”

  Mrs. Chism smiled and nodded then beamed with pride as Amelia praised her for how delicious it was. “Do you have a special trick to mixing it?” Amelia asked. “I don’t believe I’ve ever tasted anything so sweet and tangy at the same time.”

  “I use the regular sugar but I add some rhubarb to it.”

  “I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of rhubarb. What is that?”

  Mrs. Chism explained the plant and promised to give Amelia a root start from it in the fall then had to hurry off after one of her children that had wandered over to the food table for what was likely the boy’s third or even fourth helping.

  “I do hope there is room in your garden area for something like a rhubarb. Does it grow very large?” Amelia asked.

  “There should be plenty of space. It’s not much bigger than five feet across in the largest planting I’ve seen around these parts.”

  “I suppose most of the vegetables and fruit trees that grow here would be similar to what I know in Ohio. Do you think?” Amelia asked.

  “For the most part. We do have a shorter growing season I believe, but not by too much. I don’t have many fruit trees, but I’m sure we could get some more planted if you want more than the apples I’ve got. There will be an abundance of fruit on most of the trees here in town. I’m sure many of the women would be happy to share their harvests if you’d like
.”

  “It would be nice to have a variety. I am looking forward to figuring out how everything here works.”

  “We’ll also be able to buy some of the main food staples from the mercantile. There’s a butcher now that we can buy meat from instead of raising our own. I do have some chickens already. They’ll be great for eggs, but if you want them for meat, we’ll need to get more. Could do geese or ducks if you’d like.”

  “I’m open to learning how to take care of them. I’ve only really ever worked with chickens. I’ll let you decide on the geese.”

  “We can talk more on that later,” Benjamin said.

  “How about milk and cheese?” Amelia asked. “We had started to trade for or purchase that from neighbors. I don’t know if I’d be able to milk a cow anymore?”

  “There’s been a few farmers that got together to start up a cheese factory. I’ve also had some milk delivered as well.”

  “Wonderful,” Amelia said. “I was worried I wouldn’t know how to do some things out here. I’m feeling much better about life in Birch Creek now.”

  Another family walked up to the table where Amelia and Benjamin were still eating and Benjamin introduced them to his wife.

  “Amelia, this is the Johnson family. They’ll be some of our closest neighbors.” Benjamin pointed to the house down the way from his own little place then looked back at the family in front of him.

  Mrs. Johnson gave him a look with her hands on her hips. “I can’t believe you didn’t let us know you’d made plans to get married. You said nothing about it on Sunday.”

  Benjamin tried to shrug good naturedly. “I figured our Sunday meeting wasn’t the time to talk about my personal life. Thought the word of God would be a better topic.”

  “Of course the Good Word is important, but still, you could have told us what to expect. Here it is, Wednesday, three days later and surprise!”

  Benjamin chuckled. “Guess I might have to call myself to repentance.”

  Mr. Johnson laughed. “Come on, Gertrude, let the poor man alone. Things turned out all right even with short notice. And you’ll have time enough to get acquainted with Mrs. Morrison.” Mr. Johnson looked at Amelia. “She’ll have your ear for every second you let her. But she’s a good woman. Don’t you worry none about it being gossip or the like. She just likes to talk and tell stories and ask questions.”

  Amelia smiled. “I look forward to visiting with you. It’s important to have someone to talk to. Since everything here will be so new to me, I’d love to have help knowing all the little details about garden care, knowing what to expect with the weather, any kinds of animals to watch out for.”

  “For certain,” Gertrude said. “I can help you with all that.”

  Mr. Johnson put his arm around his wife, hugged her close, and expertly turned her away and led her off to where others were visiting. Benjamin appreciated the relief he received from that. He hoped there wouldn’t be any more questions on why he hadn’t mentioned Amelia to his congregation.

  Amelia took another bite of her food and watched the people milling around then spoke quietly to him. “You are obviously well liked here.”

  “I hope I’ve been a good help to those in the area.” He knew he wasn’t the best at what he did, but he always tried to help out and make sure the folks in town had the support and encouragement they needed. “Of course, in a town like Birch Creek, I’m only a small part of the good things that can happen. Most of the work I do pales in comparison to just the good, honest neighborly care everyone gives so freely.”

  Amelia nodded. “I can see what you mean. Just the fact that everyone is getting together on short notice and genuinely likes interacting with each other. You don’t see that kind of goodness everywhere.”

  “That’s true,” Benjamin said.

  Before he could say anything more, an excited murmur built in the crowd in front of them and a few kids started running off to the side.

  “What’s going on?” Amelia asked, just before the fiddle began to play.

  “How are you at dancing?” Benjamin asked.

  Amelia’s eyes widened and an adorable look of concern creased her forehead. “Dancing?”

  Benjamin smiled. “It’s a thing people do out here, and the best part is, you don’t have to really do any particular steps. Just a lot of clapping, and following the leader. Come on. You’ll enjoy it.”

  He took her hand in his and was pleasantly surprised at how perfect it felt there. He knew the wedding ceremony had been less than an hour ago, but now that she was his wife, things felt completely different than they had just this morning.

  ***

  Amelia allowed Benjamin to lead her out to a cleared area in between some of the tables and benches that had been set up. Not all of it was shaded by the large cottonwoods but there was shade enough to ease her worries about getting too hot.

  Dozens of people were already dancing and Amelia paused with Benjamin while they watched everyone moving around each other for a few minutes until that song ended. A new tune began and a ripple of excitement moved through the group. The men and boys stood on one side while the girls and women stood facing them while both groups clapped in unison to the music. As the fiddler continued to play, another man started something that at first seemed as if it were singing with some instructions thrown in as well. As the dancers listened to him, moving in time to his instructions and the music, Amelia began to see a pattern form and she eagerly looked forward to joining them.

  She clapped along with the others who stood nearby and before she knew it, Benjamin had taken her hand again and pulled her out into the group. She moved with him then followed the women at times, then joined Benjamin again as he led her through some dance steps before passing her off to another partner who then passed her to another.

  Laughter and squeals of delight from the woman beside her brought laughter up from inside Amelia as well.

  For a moment she got confused and hesitated for a second, then was led through the steps by her current partner before being passed along again, then once more followed a new woman who stood beside her.

  Though Amelia was certain she was making dozens of mistakes, she had never enjoyed herself during a dance more than this moment.

  Then once again, she was facing Benjamin whose own face looked just as happy and joyful as she felt right now. The song ended with her standing in front of him. Her hands rested on his upper arms while his hands were on her waist.

  A crush of disappointment hit her when the music ended, but was soon washed away as the crowd cheered and clapped and Benjamin gave her a bow then looked at her with his smile still there.

  Before she could begin to walk from the dance area, the music began again and this time, everyone partnered off instead of making lines across from each other. Benjamin took her right hand in his left, and placed his other hand on her waist, then began to show her the steps in quick succession until she picked it up by just following where he led her.

  She learned to move her feet in the same direction he did by anticipating the movement as he leaned to the side, put pressure on her waist or pulled her hand with his. By the time this song was over, she was winded and completely happy.

  “Shall we dance the next one,” Benjamin asked, “or would you like to take a short break and get a drink?”

  Amelia was torn. Mostly she just wanted to stay in his arms and dance all day, but getting a drink sounded heavenly. “A break sounds nice, but I hope we can come dance more.”

  “Of course,” Benjamin said. “Though I hope you won’t mind dancing with others as well. That’s usually how these things go. Not all of them. We’ll get to dance together again.”

  “You mean more than just the way we danced with others during the first one? Will I be dancing like this second dance with others?”

  “Most likely. Unless you’d rather not. Since it is our wedding, I suppose we could be forgiven if we mostly danced together.”

  Amelia smiled and
his answering smile seemed to hold some pleasure for him as well. At least they could enjoy dancing together.

  “How often do they hold dances like this?” Amelia asked.

  “Every time there is a wedding for sure. Then we have a Founder’s Day celebration. It’s usually too cold to gather in large groups like this during the holidays, but on occasion folks will get together in someone’s barn for a bit of fun when the winter gets a little long and boring.”

  “I’m glad,” Amelia said. “It seems like everyone here is so happy to be together. I’m pleased we can be a part of it.”

  Benjamin chuckled. “Part of it? You’re the reason for it. It felt a little odd knowing this was all for us, but now that it’s going and everyone is having a good time, I completely understand why Mrs. Howard has always insisted on holding these. No one complains at all. Not even about the short notice. Only reason it might be a problem is when someone from one of the farms or ranches a few miles away can’t quite pull things together to get here. They are disappointed to miss it, but they do understand that sometimes, life just doesn’t wait for you.”

  “Are there many that miss it?”

  Benjamin looked around. “I’m seeing most all of the families I know of. There is a cattleman and his hands that didn’t make it, but I know Cora and Levi have a baby on the way. Then one of the sheep herders’ family didn’t come. Another couple of farmers that are spread halfway from here to Oakley didn’t come either. But seems like most the rest of the valley is here.”

  “That says a lot about how important you are to them,” Amelia said. “Thank you for being such a good man that folks would make the effort to come support you.”

  Benjamin’s face pinked up a little more at her compliment. He must not be very used to being praised and she loved that he was also humble.

  Benjamin turned and poured her a drink of water from one of the pitchers that had been filled from one of the pumps nearby. The coolness of the groundwater helped refresh her and she watched with joy as the dancing continued. She couldn’t help looking forward to the moment when Benjamin would take her hand again, then lead her through the dances, his strong hand holding hers and his palm resting on her waist like before.