Whiter Than Snow (Brides of Weatherton) by Atwood Leah

Author:Atwood, Leah [Atwood, Leah]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Falling Leaf Press
Published: 2015-10-11T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

Jeremiah sat on the bench of his new wagon, reins in hand. Beside him, Tallie was bundled in a threadbare scarf, heavy coat, and a blanket. Red circles from the cold covered her cheeks. The temperature had dropped overnight, ushering in December with frigid air.

Pushing the newly acquired team of workhorses as hard as he could without compromising Tallie’s safety and comfort, Jeremiah wanted nothing more than to be home. He was ready to start this phase of life and begin his future in Weatherton with Tallie.

He stole a glance at her, then looked again, settling his gaze on his exhausted new bride. Her eyes blinked and her head nodded. His heart went out to her. She’d not uttered one complaint, but he could tell the excitement of their sudden marriage and the travel, on top of her condition, had worn her down.

It was the primary reason he’d opted to pay for a room at the boarding house last night. Darkness had fallen by the time he’d marked off everything on his list to do in town. He could have driven them home in the dark, but he already knew Tallie enough to know she’d insist on cleaning the house and wiping down six years of collected dust before she’d rest. The first thing she’d done when entering his room in Cheyenne, and then last night in town, was tidy up, straightening the blankets and hanging their clothes.

Falling asleep on a bouncing wagon was a hard task, but Tallie accomplished it. Her head drifted down, and she leaned over, cuddling with him in her sleep. He moved the reins to one hand and slid his free arm around her waist so she wouldn’t fall over.

Who was he fooling? True, he didn’t want her hurt, but he had other motives—mainly keeping Tallie near him. He wasn’t sure what it was about her that tugged at his heart, but the need to be near her, protect her, grew every hour. Could it be the beginning of love?

Soon, they were on his property. Not much had changed on the landscape. He still remembered each tree, every bend in the stream and the ravine that cut across the north side. Fifteen minutes had passed before the buildings came into view. The house, barn, smokehouse—it was all there, waiting to be occupied.

He drove the team closer until he could see the barn with an unobstructed view. It looked usable, not much worse than it had when he’d left. Someone must have stopped by to tidy the front of the house. There were no dead weeds left over from summer, no layers of grime on the porch.

“Bless you,” he whispered to the air, thanking the unknown benevolent person.

Somehow he had to wake up Tallie, but he hated to do it. If he knew that the house’s inside was satisfactory, he’d carry her straight to bed and let her sleep some more, but for all he knew, the house could be littered with vermin.

Dropping a kiss on her silky hair, he brushed away the strands that had fallen from her knot.

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