Love's Story

by Christner, Dianne; Billerbeck, Kristin;

  “I don’t understand.”

  “He’s been fired before, and I think he was just plain worried about keeping his job.”

  Meredith shook her head. “I feel sorry for him.”

  “I don’t. You ready to quit for the day? I’ve got a banking errand here for you, if you are.”

  “Sure.”

  Meredith left the newsroom, glad to be able to put the mystery of Ralston behind her, but troubled over the impending situation with Thatcher. She stopped in at the bank to make the deposit for her employer, her mind mulling over her problem.

  “You look preoccupied,” Herbert Bloomfield said. “Working on a problem?”

  “That’s what Jonah always says to me. I must be a mirror.”

  “Most women are. Speaking of,” his head motioned in the direction of his home, “the wife has some news she wants to share with you. I know that she would love it if you stopped in.”

  Meredith needed to stay busy. She certainly wouldn’t need any time to primp tonight. She wasn’t even going to change her clothes. And if Thatcher had to wait on her, all the better.

  “I’ll stop in now. Thank you.”

  She made her way past the few buildings down to the end of the street and turned the corner where the Bloomfields lived, ill prepared for what she saw: Thatcher’s horse. Should she retreat? She felt adrenaline pulse through her veins; her anger surfaced.

  She would get this over with, once and for all. She marched forward with purposeful steps and tapped on the door. Beatrice greeted her with a hug.

  “I wanted to see you. Sit down. I have something special to tell you.”

  She gripped the back of the chair instead. “Is Thatcher here?”

  “Well, yes.”

  “In there?” She nodded toward the back parlor.

  “Yes, but…”

  “I’ll just be a moment, if you don’t mind.” Meredith tossed her head and started toward the sitting room.

  Beatrice followed close behind.

  What Meredith saw caused her to halt. A wave of nausea swept over her. Thatcher and the woman of the photograph were wrapped in each other’s arms. Her mouth flew open to spew out hateful accusations, and then she remembered that this was Thatcher’s wife. She snapped her mouth closed and turned, running headlong into Beatrice.

  Thatcher looked up and released Colleen, as if she were live coals. Instantly, he moved toward Meredith.

  “Storm.”

  “Stay away from me!”

  His arms extended toward her.

  “And keep those filthy hands to yourself.”

  “Meredith, wait. It isn’t what it seems.”

  “It seems,” she spat, “that you’re going to be a daddy. Congratulations.”

  With that she pushed past Beatrice and fled out the door. She heard him call out her name again. “She’s my friend’s wife. Listen to me.”

  Meredith kept walking.

  “I have to leave for a while. I’m taking her to San Francisco. But I’ll be back for you. I’ll find you if I have to search New York City every day for the rest of my life.”

  “Let her go,” Beatrice said. “Meredith won’t listen now. She’s too angry. Maybe I can explain later. Come back in, Thatcher.”

  Thatcher knew Beatrice was right and returned with reluctance. Colleen needed him. Meredith hated him.

  Meredith broke into a run and burst into the Cooper home in a flood of tears.

  “Whatever’s wrong?” Amelia asked.

  “Leave me alone!” Meredith pushed past Amelia and ran up the steps to her room. The door slammed.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Amelia asked. “She’s acted so strange all week.”

  Jonah frowned. “I would imagine it has something to do with Mr. Talbot. I knew the moment I laid eyes on him that he and Meredith would have a hard time of it. They fell for each other from the start.”

  “Lover’s quarrel?”

  “Probably.” He made his way toward Amelia and laid his hand upon her shoulder. “Speaking of love. I think it’s time we had a talk of our own.”

  Mrs. Cooper’s eyes flew open, and Jonah led her toward the nearest chair.

  “Amelia. I have a great admiration for you. Would you allow me to court you?”

  The older woman swallowed then lowered her eyes. “I believe I would.”

  “I only hope we don’t have as much trouble as that pair.” His eyes looked toward the stairway.

  “I don’t expect we shall,” she replied.

  Chapter 30

  Meredith threw herself on her bed and cried out to God.

  “Help me. O God, help me.”

  She continued her tantrum for a few minutes more, but as the supplication kept pouring from her lips, a peace flooded over her. Meredith recognized it as God’s love. He loved her now, when she needed Him most.

  “Forgive me, Lord,” she prayed. “You are the one I’ve been searching for. It is You whom I need.”

  His love enveloped her, and it was as if new pages of Meredith’s mind were turned, and all of this understanding floated off the pages and into her heart. Every part of her knew that she had been going about everything the wrong way, making all the decisions, pushing, pushing, pushing. She’d been trying to control her father, trying to make love happen or not happen.

  “I’ve not kept my eyes on You, Jesus. Forgive me. Your peace and love are better than any earthly person’s. You are all I need. Thank You for showing Yourself to me.”

  She would survive. Her God would never forsake her, though she turned back and forth to Him like an old toy. In an ongoing prayer of praise and confession, Meredith finally dropped off into an exhausted sleep.

  When she awoke, God’s name remained on her lips. “You are still here. Live in me. Then I can live,” she prayed.

  At noon, Meredith felt doubly blessed. Her brother arrived early. She threw herself into his arms with a wild abandonment. “I’m so glad you arrived early. I want to go.”

  “Do I have time to rest up?”

  Her expression turned serious. “Of course. How much time?” Then she recalled that the Prince of Peace resided in her, and she didn’t need to push. “Take all the time you need. I’m just excited, is all.”

  “We’ll leave in the morning.”

  Jonah pushed away from the table where they had been sharing a lunch. “I’d best be packing my things also.”

  Meredith realized what her leaving meant for Jonah. He would have to leave this house.

  “But where will you go?”

  He grinned at her. “The mill. Don’t worry. Amelia and I have all the details worked out, don’t we, dear?”

  Amelia blushed, and Meredith covered her hand with her mouth. “You mean…?”

  “Yes, dear,” Amelia replied.

  “I’m so happy for you,” Meredith said.

  “Seems as if you’ve come a long way since last night,” Amelia said.

  Meredith turned serious again. “I apologize for my rudeness. I’m going to be all right now. I’m letting God rule my life. All of it.”

  Meredith saw her friend’s face soften and wondered what her brother thought of her declaration. But it didn’t matter. A deep, abiding peace flowed through her. In fact, she was so full of God’s love that the thought even went through her mind, If all that has happened to me with Thatcher, with my father, happened only so that I could truly find God, then it was all worth it. And whatever lies ahead would all be worth it even if I only had this one day of God’s love to experience. But I don’t. I have a lifetime. God is so good.

  “I’d best go pack,” she said.

  “Let me know if you need help,” Amelia called.

  First Meredith arranged all of her writing in a neat stack and placed it in the bottom of one of her travelling bags. She took a look around to decide what would go in next when a light tap sounded on her bedroom door.

  “Come in.”

  It was Mrs. Bloomfield. “Amelia just told me you’re leavi
ng.”

  Meredith pulled out the chair from her desk and offered, “Please, sit down.”

  As her friend sat, Meredith cleared a spot on the bed and sat also. “I wish to apologize for last night. I was rude and thoughtless.”

  The woman’s hand sliced through the air. “Nonsense.” She looked about the uprooted room. “I wish you didn’t have to go and that I had your pluck and courage.”

  “Don’t wish it. I’ve learned a better way.” She rubbed her palms against her skirt. “I’ve given everything over to God, and I feel so much better.” Then she waved her hand. “I’m through being a progressive woman. Now I’m…” She tilted her head, looking for the right word. “Just God’s.”

  “I can see there’s a new peace about you. You were so angry last night.”

  Meredith chose not to think about Thatcher and asked instead, “Your husband said you had some news, a surprise. What were you trying to tell me?”

  Beatrice smiled deeply and even turned a little red. “We’re going to have a baby.”

  The words hit Meredith with such impact that she flew to her feet and rushed to kneel before her friend. “I’m so happy for you. How wonderful.”

  “I’m so happy.” Beatrice sighed. “But my happiness would be complete if only you and Thatcher could make amends.”

  Meredith rose, backed up a few steps. “How can you say that when you know that he’s married?”

  “Thatcher isn’t married.”

  “He has you fooled, too. The woman that he was with. He carries her photograph. It is signed from his loving wife.” She saw Beatrice’s look of shock. “Perhaps you don’t know. There’s some sort of scandal with his family. His father has a reward out on him. He ran off on that woman. His wife.”

  “No, no.” Beatrice shook her head. “I know all about it, but you’ve got it wrong. Thatcher is not married. That is his friend’s wife. The one who ruined your plans the other night. Our friend was searching for her, but then his father got sick. When Colleen appeared and needed help, Thatcher agreed to help her get home. She’s pregnant.”

  Meredith plopped back onto the bed. “I saw.” The pieces fell into place. “You’re sure?”

  “Of course, I’m sure. Thatcher is the most upstanding man. Even all his father’s money could not corrupt him after he became a Christian. When we heard what was happening in Chicago, we encouraged Thatcher to come to Buckman’s Pride and visit us. The idea of working at the logging camp intrigued him from the moment we suggested it. You can trust Thatcher, Meredith.”

  She shook her head regretfully. “If he is all that, then he surely doesn’t deserve me.”

  “Nonsense. He loves you.”

  Meredith remembered Thatcher’s declaration of love. “It’s too late. My brother’s here. It’s time to go.”

  “Please, don’t leave with things like this.”

  “God is in control now. Thatcher knows where to find me if he wants to. I hate to leave you and all my friends, but I must go.”

  “I’ll write to you.”

  “Come visit me.”

  “Perhaps I shall.”

  That afternoon Meredith went by the newsroom to pick up her things and say farewell to the editor. She glanced sadly at the sign in his window. REPORTER WANTED. She stopped by the mill and left a letter at the post office for the bull at Bucker’s Stand. This town would always hold a special place in her heart.

  The following morning, she unashamedly let the tears flow as she hugged Amelia and Jonah good-bye. She gave them both her blessings, and then Meredith and her brother rode out of town.

  That evening, around a campfire, memories flooded Meredith. She remembered Silas, who had guided her and Jonah through these woods, and the campfires she had faced with them. But most of all, she remembered the night she was lost in the woods with Thatcher.

  She had treated Thatcher shabbily from the start. He was an honest man, and she had probed into his painful personal life and harbored accusations against him from the start. He had loved her, and she had spurned him at every turn.

  She let out a deep regretful sigh.

  “Are you sure you want to leave?” Charles asked.

  “It’s only that I learned too late.”

  “Learned what too late?”

  “To trust God. To trust the man I loved.”

  “I think it’s time you told me the whole story. We’ve got all night. What’s going on in your life, Storm?”

  Meredith told her brother the whole thing, every ugly detail.

  Chapter 31

  Thatcher rode into Buckman’s Pride weary and downcast. His friend’s pregnant wife was on a train, where he had paid an attendant to give her the best of care. He could only imagine what joy William would experience when his wife returned to him. Colleen mourned her actions of leaving her husband and rejoiced when Thatcher explained the changes William had made—how he longed for nothing more than to be reconciled and to be able to prove his love to Colleen. Thatcher knew there would be a happy reunion and prayed that all would go well with her trip. He prayed for William and the things he was facing at home with his father’s illness.

  If only Thatcher’s own romance had turned out so well. Thatcher felt that he had ruined things between him and Meredith for good. It seemed that the harder he had tried, from the beginning, the more he had hurt her. He wasn’t sure how it kept happening or why. But he knew he loved her, and he would hunt her down if it took every breath he had. He would never let her go until she understood how much he cared for her. But right now, he was only so tired.

  He tied up his horse outside the Bloomfields’ and knocked on the door. His friends received him warmly and showed him to a soft bed, where he slept the rest of the day and that night through.

  At daylight, he started out for the logging camp.

  The Bloomfields had told him that he had just missed Meredith. What a wonder he hadn’t met her on the trail somewhere. He had arrived the same day Meredith had left. He didn’t know her plans, what other logging camps she intended to visit along the way. He wanted to give her time to cool off before he showed up in New York City.

  One thing he knew for sure. His logging days were over. He would give his resignation to the bull and pack up his belongings. He would stay the night and say farewell to his friends.

  The bull took the news of Thatcher’s resignation with little emotion. Thatcher headed for the bunkhouse. It was empty. He packed his things, then sat on his bed, wondering what his next move would be. He prayed, “Lord, You know the desires of my heart. Please, help me.”

  “Thatcher?” The words sounded soft, hesitant, familiar. But, it couldn’t be. His head jerked around.

  It was! He jumped to his feet. “Meredith. It is you.” His voice held reverence.

  Hers quivered in return, but picked up force. “I shall not let my vanity ruin my life. I came back for you, Thatcher.”

  He didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or throw himself into her arms.

  “My sweet. I was going to come for you.”

  “We’ve wasted enough time, haven’t we?” She took a hesitant step toward him. “Can you ever forgive me?”

  He closed the distance between them and pulled her to himself, saying the words against her hair. “Forgive you? I love you. I always have.”

  She pushed back away from him, looked up into his dark eyes. “I want you to know everything. Please, let me explain.”

  He nodded and dropped his arms.

  “I’ve been so proud and controlling with my life. I’m not happy with the way I’ve treated you and others. God has shown me a better way. I’m yours, if you’ll have me.”

  “Have you? Meredith, don’t you know? I was going to follow you and beg, plead for you to believe me and marry me.”

  She reached up and touched his face. “I believe you. I always shall from this day forward.”

  “Marry me?”

  “Yes.”

  He stooped to kiss her, and Meredith thoug
ht that nothing could ever be more beautiful than her life this day, with Christ’s love, with Thatcher’s. Her heart soared with emotion.

  “Hmm-mmm.” A deep clearing of the throat came from the bunkhouse doorway. They both looked up, and Meredith drew out of Thatcher’s arms.

  The man in the door said, “I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced. I’m Storm’s brother.”

  Thatcher strode toward him. “I’m her fiancé.”

  Meredith smiled up at her brother. “Charles persuaded me to come back after you.”

  Thatcher looked at the man with surprise. “Then I know I’m going to like you a lot.”

  Charles chuckled. “We’ll get along fine.”

  The wedding was held the following Sunday in Buckman’s Pride with all Meredith and Thatcher’s friends attending. Both Jonah and Beatrice promised to bring their spouses to visit them. Jonah, Meredith was sure, would marry Amelia soon.

  After the wedding celebration, Thatcher took Meredith for a stroll along the river.

  “I really like Charles,” Thatcher said.

  “I’m so glad. I hope when he breaks the news that father takes it well.”

  “From what Charles says, he’s trying to change. Are you anxious to see him?”

  “Yes.”

  “We’ll visit him on our honeymoon.”

  “I’m not expecting miracles, though.”

  “You should; we’re living one.”

  “I know.”

  They stopped at a high bank that looked down over the water. The sun was just starting to set. Beautiful colors made a promising display, and hope for the future filled both their hearts.

  “We’ll camp our way to San Francisco and have our own private celebration there,” Thatcher said.

  “That could be expensive.”

  He pulled her close. “I can afford it.”

  She smiled up at him.

  “Then we’ll go to the land office and let you pick out the camps you want to visit.”

  “Any that I want?” she asked, even though they had already agreed upon all this earlier.