The Bachelor Tax by Carolyn Davidson

Author:Carolyn Davidson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-05-26T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

A full pail of warm water waited by the washstand, and a bar of French-milled soap had been placed by the china basin, ready for her use. Rosemary picked it up, lifting it to her nose as she sniffed at the delicate fragrance.

Lilac, she decided, and thought of the child who was even now sleeping in the next room. Who had wanted to smell like flowers. She’d accomplished that aim, and if Rosemary had done nothing else in her lifetime, she’d granted that desire.

Her golden hair gleaming, her clean face aglow, Anna had presented herself to Scat at the supper table. He’d allowed her to preen, burying his nose in her hair as she asked, complimented her lavishly, and then offered his thanks to Rosemary with halting words that brought tears to her eyes.

All this because of Tanner. Rosemary unwrapped the bar of soap slowly. He’d purchased the soap for her, probably on a whim. For those few short moments when he’d left her on the buggy seat, to pick up supplies, he’d said. Then, with only a small parcel in his hand, he had returned to her.

The ceremony had been short, with Pip leaving the store only long enough to arrive breathlessly at the parsonage for the few brief moments it took to turn Rosemary Gibson into Gabe Tanner’s wife. The goodbyes were a flurry of wishes, waving hands and curious eyes upon them as the buggy traveled at a smart pace down the street.

Rosemary lathered a cloth with the fragrant soap and drew it over her face and neck, then down her arms and beneath them. Dressed only in her chemise, she felt pressed for time. Tanner had headed for the barn to tend last-minute chores, he’d said.

It was Rosemary’s opinion that he’d simply offered her a few moments alone to prepare for her wedding night. It would take far longer than the time allotted her, she feared. In her whole experience of living, nothing she’d ever heard about or known about firsthand had prepared her for this.

Mama Pearl had patted her reassuringly just moments ago. “Tanner’ll be good to you, girl. You just watch and see. He took a real shine to you right off, and his eyes light up just like Christmas candles when you come in sight.”

She rinsed the soap from her skin and dried the dampness with the soft towel Mama Pearl had left for her. There hadn’t been much in those few words the woman had said that would settle the questions befuddling her mind.

She looked into the mirror, scanning the image she presented. Tanner liked her hair, he’d already told her that. His hand had been on her bosom, and his gaze had touched her there with approval. She watched as a rosy hue traveled from that forbidden area to color her cheeks. She’d lived with her body for almost thirty years, and only now had it become so important.

From below, she heard voices, faint, yet unmistakable, as Tanner and Mama Pearl spoke in the kitchen.

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