“Well, how can she not be excited to get a bride and a baby in such short order.”
Mary jerked in surprise. “You know about the baby?”
“Yes, I do, but I have not told a soul. Even if I did it would not matter here. Babies are a blessing on the frontier, and we greet each of them with joy and happiness. You will not be looked down upon for it.”
Mary felt like the floor had opened up beneath her, the curious sense of falling overtaking her suddenly. How had she been living for months with her mother telling her how precarious her life was, how suddenly she was on borrowed time and that once her condition became apparent no one of good standing would want her near.
And here Miss Rosemary was telling her that life in Gold Sky offered something entirely different for her and her child.
They need not run and hide the birth, nor her method of conception. A baby would be welcomed, not reviled.
A shuddering breath escaped her at the news and she nearly laughed. Instead she sank back in her chair with a nod at Rosemary. “That’s very kind of you to say,” she whispered.
“I just cannot wait for the wedding! It will be a lovely affair, you’ll see. The town of Gold Sky knows how to care for its own and that is what you are now.” The other woman beamed at her and gave her hand a squeeze. Mary blinked back tears and smiled at her.
“That’s so kind of you to say. Thank you.” Her voice was soft, and she had to look away, lest she burst into tears. She had been without an anchor since her father passed away but now here was a place that she could tether herself to and find peace. “Everyone here has been so kind to me even after my deplorable behavior when first arriving.”
Miss Rosemary reached across the table and put a hand over hers. “We all do things we are not proud of, dear. That is not the summation of your character but only a look at who you were in that moment. You do not have to let it define you if you do not wish it to.”
“I know that but…” Mary swallowed hard and shook her head. “It’s difficult to understand it. I have been scared for so long, and anxious as well. I do not know how to set things right, not truly.”
“You are speaking of how you treated someone?”
“Yes, Violet Shield, well, now Baptiste. I was silent on matters when I should have spoken out. She did not deserve the treatment she suffered from my mother or myself. Not over a man, and to be truthful not over anything. It was terrible how she was nearly ruined.”
“Ah,that.” Miss Rosemary nodded and then said, “Do you know what I have learned from such situations?”
“No, what?”
“That when you treat a person badly, it is not because of what they have done but what is wrong in here,” She tapped a finger against her chest. “And that once you realize that, you can truly make amends.”
“And how do I make amends?”
“You ask for forgiveness of course, dear. Plain and simple. You are not the only one to ever commit such an act and you shall not be the last. I myself was a doer of such animosity.”
Mary looked at her in surprise. “You? But you’re so kind and warm.”
“People can be both,” Rosemary replied with a little shrug and sipped her tea. “People have the capacity for great kindness and mercy as well as ugliness. It depends on our hearts and where they are in that moment. I have chosen to fix mine and in doing so have been able to rectify my actions.”
“Buthow?”
“I apologized.”
“That's it?”
Miss Rosemary smiled at her. “I sincerely and honestly apologized. I made no excuses and asked for forgiveness. I was lucky to be given that grace by those I wronged. I cherish them and their friendships to this day.”
Mary chewed on her bottom lip in consideration. “I must apologize to Violet at once.”
“It would do you a world of good, dear.”
She pushed away from the table and nodded, already making for the door. “You are right, I will find her and lay my heart bare.”
“But do not forget your letter from our dear Alex!” Miss Rosemary called out, holding a letter above her head. “Your mother will be expecting you to return with it in hand.”
“Oh! You’re right!” Mary rushed back to grab the letter but not before she bent low and hugged Rosemary tightly. “Thank you for your advice and for listening to me. You have been a godsend to me. I will never forget it.”
Rosemary hugged her back. “My pleasure, Mary. And welcome to Gold Sky.”
