A Wedding at the Orange Blossom Inn by Shelley Shepard Gray

Author:Shelley Shepard Gray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2015-10-20T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

What a commotion three girls and one boy could make while running down the street! As her girls and William ran toward her, all smiling as bright as you please, Emma quickly stepped out of the flower bed she was weeding and dusted off the front of her dress.

“Mamm!” Lena called out. “Mamm, guess what?”

“What? I canna begin to guess,” she teased, looking just beyond the four kinner at Tricia and Ben, who were walking far more sedately behind them. Ben had offered to get the children from school from time to time as a simple way to thank her for helping William with his homework. Carefully, she scanned the children’s expressions, looking for signs that one of the kids was in trouble or that something unexpected had happened at school.

“It’s wonderful-gut,” Mandy said as she practically skidded to a stop in front of Emma. “The best.”

After giving her, Annie, and William hugs, she straightened and looked at Ben and Tricia again. “Now that all of you are here, please don’t keep me in suspense any longer. What happened?”

“Ben and Tricia are going to get married!” William said.

“Oh!” Looking at the young couple, she felt tears prick her eyes. “Mandy was correct, this is wonderful-gut news. The best! Congratulations to you both.”

Before Tricia or Ben could get a word in edgewise, Lena added, “And Mommy, guess what? They’re going to get married at the Orange Blossom Inn!”

“Truly?”

“In four weeks’ time!” Mandy exclaimed as all three girls joined hands and began jumping around again.

Emma sat down on the front step and reached a hand out to William. “And congratulations to you, too, William! Soon, you will have a new sister.”

His eyes widened. “I never thought of it like that.” He clutched her hand and made her very happy when he sat down right by her side.

“I’m sure Tricia has thought of that. Ain’t so?” she asked the young lady.

Smiling softly, Tricia nodded. “I have a sister but no brothers, William. I’m glad you and Mark will be my bruders. It’s a lovely blessing.”

“Indeed, it is,” Emma said. “Happy news is always a blessing, to be sure.” When both Ben and Tricia sat down on her small front porch, she smiled. “Tell me how your parents took it.”

“My daed was surprised but pleased, too,” Ben said. “He married my mamm when they were young, so he remembered what being in love at our age felt like.”

“I married at eighteen, so I remember that feeling, too,” she said softly. Suddenly, all the years of building a home and a marriage flashed in her mind. Those had been busy years, stressful years. She and Sanford had been so young and inexperienced in the ways of the world. Luckily for them, though, they hadn’t had time to wonder if they were doing things right. They’d had Lena almost ten months after the wedding and Mandy and Annie followed soon after.

Then, of course, came Sanford’s heart attack. And after that? Well, her life had changed forever.

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