Mail Order Melody

by Kirsten Osbourne

  "If you want help with them, I'm happy to come over."

  Eliza smiled at the offer. "Why don't you teach me the few things I really need to do now, and then we'll maybe meet up every Wednesday for lunch so I can ask questions?" She was thrilled the other woman was willing to go along with her plan to get help. Maybe she could hide how inept she was from Calvin for a while longer.

  Abigail nodded. "I'd like that a lot. Calvin is such a nice man. I'm glad he found you."

  *****

  That evening after the dishes were finished, and she'd completed his shirt for him, she wrote a quick letter to her sister just to let her know that she was safe and all right. Instead of sending it directly to her sister, though, she wrote to her sister's mother- in-law and asked her to pass the message along. She didn't want to be found through her sister.

  "Dear Beulah, I wanted to let you know that I've married and settled in Missouri. I don't want anyone to find me here, so please, have your mother-in-law send any correspondence for you. I've married a sweet man named Calvin Simpson, and I wish with all my heart that he either loved to sing a bit less, or he could hear when he misses every single note. He has a nice voice, but he can't carry a tune in an airtight bucket. He's a good man, though, and I'm happy to be his wife. I wish I was closer to you and the boys, but I have no real choice in the matter. Give Gavin and Jack- son my love. Watch out for them and for yourself. There are bad people in this world. All my love, Eliza."

  When she finished the letter, she got it ready to mail.

  "Who are you writing?" Calvin asked as she set the letter on the table to be mailed.

  "My sister, Beulah. She'll worry if she doesn't hear from me." Of course, the real reason she was writing is so she could make certain her sister was safe. She was the worrier, not the other way around. She wished she could be with her sister and make certain she was always safe.

  "You said she's in upstate New York, right?" He'd never been that far east, having been raised in Ohio.

  "Yes, with her two boys." Eliza wasn't willing to give even him a lot of information about her family, because she was so worried something would happen to them. She needed them to be safe.

  He nodded, watching her carefully. There was something she wasn't telling him, but he had no idea what it was. She was a good wife to him, and at the moment that was all that mattered.

  Eliza stood and stretched. "I'm going to get ready for bed," she told him. "You do work on Saturdays, don't you?" She'd never known anyone other than a teacher who took Saturdays off work, but she had to ask.

  "Yup. Of course I do. I take Sundays off for the Sabbath, but that's the only time."

  "Give me a few minutes to get ready." She left the room quickly, hurrying up the stairs. She was always worried he'd come into the room while she was washing up and putting her nightgown on.

  After cleaning up, she slipped between the sheets, already quivering with anticipation. Every night when he climbed into bed beside her, he'd kiss her and stroke her and do everything he could to make her feel like the most beautiful woman alive. Tonight would be no different she was certain.

  Calvin walked slowly up the stairs to their bedroom, making certain to give her enough time to change, but knowing he was going to do things a bit differently that night. Every night so far, he'd turned down the lamp before getting undressed and going to bed. Tonight, he was going to leave the light on and look at her lovely body as he touched her.

  He knocked on the door and went in, moving to the water bowl. He pulled his shirt out of his pants without looking at her, but he knew she was watching him. He could feel her heated gaze on his skin. He removed his shirt, dropping it to the floor as he made use of the water in the bowl. When he unfastened his pants and dropped them he heard her gasp, but he didn't look her way.

  Finally he turned to walk over to the bed and found her staring at him, her eyes glued to his erection. He expected to see a bit of fear in them, but not his sweet Eliza. No, she was looking at him with appreciation. There was no doubt in his mind then that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her. He wasn't going to stop tonight unless she asked him to. He wanted to be inside her, and she knew him well enough now to know he wouldn't hurt her. He said a quick prayer that she wouldn't ask him to stop.

  Eliza was surprised that he hadn't turned off the light, but she enjoyed the view of his long, lean body the glow from the lamp afforded her. She studied every inch of his bare skin, pleased to finally be able to look at him. She watched as he climbed into bed beside her, holding her breath as he moved to the middle of the bed as always and pulled her against him.

  He hadn't been overly appreciative of her voice, which had surprised her, but she knew what her man wanted. She got onto her knees on the bed, and pulled her nightgown over her head, tossing it to the floor. Being that bold went against her nature and everything inside her, but she didn't care. He had been good to her, hiding her from her fears and being gentle when she'd messed up. She would give him the gift he'd been waiting for a week and a half early.

  Calvin stared at her pink-tipped breasts, swallowing hard. He wanted to touch her. He needed to touch her. He got to his knees facing her, his hands reaching out to stroke down the sides of her breasts and over her slightly rounded stomach. "You're so beautiful."

  She smiled, her hand stroking his cheek. "I'm a little rounder than most men like."

  He shrugged. "I think you're perfect just the way you are." One hand stroked her breast, the thumb teasing her nipple. The other went straight down to her knee and gently moved up toward the juncture of her thighs. "I have to touch you."

  Eliza nodded, her hands going out to grip his shoulders.

  'Touch me anywhere."

  He took her at her word, his hand going up to her core, one finger gently toying with her nub. "Spread your legs for me a little, sweetheart," he mumbled, his lips going to the side of her neck to distract her from what his hand was doing between her legs.

  As soon as she moved her legs apart, his finger moved down, finding her center, and gliding gently inside. She was so tight around his finger, he almost groaned, wanting desperately to feel her gripping his manhood the same way she gripped his finger so tightly.

  Eliza let out a low moan as his finger slid inside her. She'd never even dared to touch herself there, and this man, whom she'd only known for a few days, had his finger inside her. Her lips found his and pressed hard, her tongue venturing out to trace his lips.

  Calvin slowly moved his finger in and out of her tight core, wanting nothing more than to end this torture. He needed her. Would she understand that? He broke the kiss, staring into her eyes as he added another finger to the first, still moving them both inside her. "I need you," he whispered.

  She nodded slightly, her hand moving down his body and gripping his manhood in her hand. "I need you, too." As soon as the words were out, she wanted to take them back, but she knew she couldn't. He needed to know that she was as aroused by their touching as he was.

  He removed his fingers from her body, surprised by how wet they were from her moisture. Moving backward he pressed his back against the headboard of the bed and pulled her astride him, one of her thighs on either side of his. He carefully guided her down until the tip of his member was pressing inside her, just a bit.

  Eliza stared at him with wide eyes. She hadn't expected him to pull her down over him, and she wasn't certain exactly what he wanted her to do. "I don't know how," she told him, wanting more of him inside her, filling the ache that spread through her entire body.

  The sweat stood out on his brow from the effort it was taking to control his lust. "I'll help you," he murmured. "Press down and take me inside you." He wanted her to have control over the pain of her first time, and he wasn't going to force his way into her.

  She put her hands on his shoulders to help leverage herself, and slowly let herself sink down onto him, the pain brief but sharp. Once he was fully embedded inside her, she
leaned forward and kissed him. "I feel so full. It's strange," she whispered, wondering if she was supposed to talk about it, but not knowing the protocol for having relations with her husband for the first time.

  He gripped her bottom tightly, wanting her to take her time to get used to him inside her, but not too long. He wanted to tell her to relax and scream at her to move at the same time. She felt so good around him, but it was an exquisite torture. "You're so tight."

  Her eyes widened. Was she hurting him? She hadn't considered it could be painful for him as well. "I'll get off. I don't want to hurt you." She started to move her hips and pulled mostly away from him, letting out a gasp of pleasure as he slid most of the way from her body.

  He pulled her back down onto him, shaking his head. "No, it feels good. It feels...God, I can't describe it. So good."

  She looked into his eyes, and realized that what she was seeing wasn't pain but lust. She liked that she could bring him to that state. Leaning forward, she pressed her face into his neck, nipping at it gently. "I like how it feels when you're moving inside me," she whispered, embarrassed at the confession. "Do I have to stay still?"

  He groaned at her words, wishing she wasn't quite so innocent, but thrilled at the same time that he was her first. "No, we need to move that way for me to spill my seed inside you."

  Her eyes widened with surprise. "I didn't know."

  He smiled, stroking her cheek. "Now you do." He moved his hand back to her hip and slowly guided her up and down, showing her the movements she needed to make to help them both find completion.

  Eliza was surprised by just how good it felt to having him moving in and out of her. Her breathing was labored, and she could feel something tightening in her stomach. She needed something from him, but she didn't know what. She moved faster atop him, wanting to reach whatever elusive feeling was just out of her grasp.

  Calvin held tight to her, letting her have her way. He kept a tight rein on his passion, not wanting to finish before she found completion. Watching her, he held her tightly as she threw her head back and panted, calling his name.

  He gripped her hips and forced her to move a few more times until he finished, his seed spilling from his body inside her. He pulled her closer to him, her face going to the crook of his neck and his arms holding her tightly. He was still inside her as he stroked her back, trying to tell her without words just how much she'd pleased him.

  She didn't know how long she sat with him that way, completely surrounding him, collapsed onto his hard body. Finally she slid upward, detaching herself from him and fell to the bed, lying on her side. "Why didn't you tell me it would feel so good?" she asked, immediately regretting the words. She shouldn't speak so freely, should she?

  He laughed softly. "I had no idea it would feel like that." He moved down and pulled her against him, hugging her tightly. 'Thank you."

  Eliza kissed his shoulder, pillowing her head. She was exhausted. "My pleasure." She giggled at her own words, not believing she could enjoy a physical act quite so much. Why, it was better than singing!

  Calvin held her close as she fell asleep in his arms. All he could think about was doing it again. Maybe he'd wake her early in the morning. She wouldn't mind, would she?

  Chapter Five

  When Abigail came over on Wednesday, Eliza had a list of questions to ask the younger woman about how to cook certain things. Christmas was only a couple of weeks away, so she was thrilled to learn how to cook some more complicated dishes for her husband for the holiday. While they were talking and laughing together, Eliza asked, "Why don't you and Stanley come over for Christmas dinner? Do you go to church on Christmas morning?"

  Abigail nodded eagerly. "I would love that. We could come over right after church, and I'd help you cook."

  Eliza loved the idea of spending so much time with the younger couple. As they sewed together, she sang softly. They each made an apron while Eliza sang and she and Abigail chatted. By the time her new friend was leaving, she was sad that their time together was over.

  She hadn't realized how much she missed having other women around until she'd made a new friend, and then she wanted to weep for the years of loneliness. Abigail made her miss Beulah more than ever, because her sister had always been her closest friend. How could she possibly go for years without seeing her?

  An idea slowly formed in her mind, and she thought about writing to Elizabeth Miller from Beckham and asking if she could find a husband for Beulah. She wanted her sister with her.

  Letting the idea go, she shook her head, deciding that whatever happened would happen when the time was right.

  *****

  Before church on Sunday, Pastor Gibbons spoke with Eliza and asked her to sing at the Christmas service. She knew immediately it had been Abigail who had told him of her voice, but she shook her head. "I'm sorry. I don't sing in public." She silently added 'anymore.'

  Calvin was standing beside her, and looked at her with surprise. "You have a real pretty voice. You should do it. I bet you'd sound good with Christmas songs and not just those old songs in other languages you usually sing."

  The minister looked at her in surprise. "Old songs in other languages?"

  Eliza smiled, not looking at Calvin. "I'm an opera fan. I mainly sing arias around the house." She forced herself not to panic and to simply downplay her husband's words.

  "Are you sure you won't grace us with just one song? 'Silent Night' is my favorite."

  Pastor Gibbons was all but begging her to sing, and she felt that she had been given the gift, so she should use it for the Lord. He would protect her if she used it for His glory, right? Finally, she nodded. In a town the size of Pudville, there wasn't much chance that she'd meet up with someone who had heard her sing. "Yes, I'll do it." She hoped she wasn't making a mistake.

  Calvin smiled and nodded at her, obviously happy she was going to sing a song he liked. "She'll do the whole church proud, Pastor. She's got a beautiful voice."

  That evening as they had supper, Calvin asked her why she'd been reluctant to sing. She shook her head, tears springing into her eyes. She couldn't talk about it yet.

  Calvin nodded sadly, wishing whatever was wrong, whatever she was hiding from, she could tell him about it. He hated that she felt the need to keep her fears bottled up inside her.

  In bed that night, he held her close after making sweet love to her. "I'm here to listen if you ever want to talk about what is frightening you," he told her.

  She shook her head and whispered, "Thank you." She trusted him as she'd never trusted anyone else, but Beulah and the boys were too important for her to lose them.

  Calvin listened to the words she didn't speak, feeling overwhelmingly sad that she didn't trust him with her secrets. He felt so much for her, and she obviously didn't feel the same.

  *****

  They opened their gifts before church on Christmas morning. She'd finished making his dark brown scarf and matching stocking hat. Both would help to keep him warm throughout the long winter. They were wrapped and on the table on Christmas morning.

  He opened the package and smiled happily, trying the cap on with the scarf immediately. "These are wonderful! How did you find time?" He was delighted that she'd taken her time to make something special for him, because to him the hours she spent working on his gift showed how much she cared for him.

  She simply shrugged, her eyes dancing at his obvious delight over the gifts. She picked up her gift at his urging. It was small, and she had no idea what he would get her. She carefully opened the gift to find a jewelry box inside. The only jewelry she'd ever worn off stage was the wedding band he'd given her the day they married.

  She opened the box to find a chain with a pendant shaped like quarter notes. She looked at him in surprise. Did he know more than he was letting on? Or did he just know that she liked music?

  "It's beautiful! Thank you." She turned her back to him so he could fasten the chain around her neck. L
ooking into a mirror, she saw that the pendant was laying at the base of her throat, and she loved how it looked. He was everything she'd ever wanted and so much more. She fell a bit more in love with him every day.

  When they got to church, she was surprised to find that she was nervous about singing in front of the congregation. She'd long since lost her stage fright when she appeared before others, because she'd done it so often, but these were people she knew, not total strangers. Her hand was shaking slightly as she sat beside Calvin in the pew, waiting for Pastor Gibbons to call her to the front for her solo.

  When the time came, she moved to the front of the church, and the pastor smiled at her. He made a brief announcement introducing her. " For those of you who haven't met Eliza Simpson, she is Calvin Simpson's new wife. I have yet to hear her sing, but I have been told she has the voice of an angel. I couldn't let anyone else sing on Christmas morning. She's going to grace us with her rendition of 'Silent Night."'

  Eliza waited a moment after the pastor finished speaking, expecting absolute silence. After all the opera halls and theaters she'd sung in, this small church should have been nothing. It wasn't though.

  As soon as the first notes of the song rang throughout the small church, she saw people sit up straighter to take notice. There were a few gasps from people as they realized that she didn't have just a pretty voice. She had vocal training to go with it.

  When the last note had faded away, many of the congregation were wiping tears from their eyes. Eliza waited a moment before walking back to her seat, the entire building silent.