The Lighthouse Keeper's Bride by Kelly McClymer

Author:Kelly McClymer [McClymer, Kelly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kelly McClymer Books

Chapter 15

The healing process was slow, but steady. Soon enough, Betsy was impatient to get back on her feet and become a productive member of Rookport society again—or at least a competent lighthouse keeper. She had taken to moving around the house much sooner than the doctor from town recommended, but as far as she was concerned, it couldn’t be helped. Lying infirm all day every day started making her stir-crazy the second her mind returned full force. That first night actually speaking to Matthew beyond a wordless exchange of the coldest glares she could muster must have done wonders for her health. After that thick layer of ice had been broken, Betsy woke up each day feeling a little better.

Still, her recovery took much more time than she would’ve liked. Three weeks on from the sudden storm that had sent her hurtling headfirst into the raging embrace of the sea, she was finally getting by almost like normal, just a little bit slower. She’d picked up her chores around the inside of the lighthouse, and she would have gladly gone back to the rest of her groundskeeping duties, if not for Matthew and the children’s persistent worries. It didn’t matter how many times she reminded them that the rocks were hardly dangerous if not drenched in teeming rain and crashing tide.

Her protests fell on largely deaf ears. But then Peter had to ship out on his fishing crew’s next expedition, and although Betsy was sad to see him go, she also felt a fierce surge of pride. It was hardly glamorous work the boy was doing, and she knew those in town who were privy to his loftier aspirations sometimes whispered about him. None of that prevented Peter from seeking a way to attain the future he envisioned. All the same, he worried about her when he left, and he promised to try and return home sooner. Betsy had hugged him tight and told him not to be ridiculous. She and the girls, she’d said, were fine.

While that was undoubtedly true, Betsy also couldn’t deny that she felt a modicum of relief over Peter’s departure. She loved the boy as if he were her own, but it was impossible to ignore the frostiness hanging between him and Matthew. The two of them hardly spoke or made eye contact, and they never referred to each other by name. The better she got, the more Betsy noticed this odd dynamic. Whenever she thought of it, she laughed to herself—perhaps Peter was simply a far better judge of character than she would have been at his age.

That wasn’t to say things with Matthew weren’t slowly moving in the direction of improvement. Being forced to have him at her bedside nearly twenty-four hours a day had made her acclimate to his presence much faster than she was willing to under normal circumstances. And the fact that he’d elected to stay and help reflected favorably on his character. Not favorably enough to get their failed engagement stricken from the record, He did, however, deserve credit where credit was due.

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