Mail Order Bride: Katie (Orphan Brides Go West Book 3) by Holt Vivi

Author:Holt, Vivi [Holt, Vivi]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: clean and wholesome, Mail Order Bride, Sweet romance
Published: 2016-04-08T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Katie woke to the sound of a woodpecker hammering at the trunk of a nearby tree. The air was full of the call of birds, the low of grazing cattle and even the buzzing of bees. Compared to the cacophony of city noises that Katie was used to, and the clackety-clacking of the train over the past ten days, the gentle sounds of country life were a welcome change. The shrill call of curlews had interrupted her sleep throughout the night, startling her into partial wakefulness each time. Yet she felt as though she'd slept for days when her eyes opened and her mouth gaped in a wide yawn.

The sun was high in the sky, and the aroma of freshly baked bread wafted up the staircase to greet her. Katie lay on her back, relishing a rare lazy moment. For the first time since Nicholas’s death, the anxiety that had brought a constant tingling sensation to her chest was gone, and she smiled at the ceiling before throwing back the covers and standing to her feet.

Traipsing to the window in her nightgown and cap, Katie leaned on the ledge and peered out at the farm below. In the distance she could see David leading a brown cow with a white head into a large, red barn. A fluffy dog bounded around his legs, chuffing and yapping in delight. Further down the field, a small herd of cattle with the same brown and white markings were grazing on the green grass. Other than the single field of grass, the rest of the property on every side was covered in swaying fields of golden wheat. The half-grown crop reached skyward, tall and straight, ready for the thick heads that would sprout and grow heavy when the weather turned warm.

Katie dressed quickly, and washed up in a washbasin that Mrs. Hutchins had kindly filled with clean, fresh water and left by her bedroom door. She looked around for a mirror and found one inside the wardrobe, where she was able to smooth her hair back into a chignon, check it for stray wisps and pinch her pale cheeks before she hurried downstairs. She was starving, and if she didn’t eat soon she’d be sick all over again.

Mrs. Hutchins might not be suspicious after she threw up once at the store, but she was bound to catch on quickly to Katie’s condition if she continued to be sick. Either that, or she and Kristoff would insist that Katie visit a doctor and she couldn’t do that without them discovering she was pregnant. She just had to make it to Friday without anyone guessing what was going on. After that, she’d be married and would tell Kristoff the truth.

It had been difficult to keep her condition a secret the previous evening in the buggy. All the way to the Hutchins’ farm, she’d been so ill. The boy driving the vehicle had pushed the horse into a canter almost as soon as they set off. They weaved, swayed, lurched, and careened around corners at top speed.

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