Poppy smiled. “It’s hard to believe I teach them.” Poppy rolled out the dough for the dumplings while her sister putthe chicken into the pot and added water and spices. Together, they’d made many meals, and they had a rhythm down.
“Jack and Grace will be here for supper tonight as well as Charles.”
“Oh, good. We’ll have a full house. It’s a good thing Elmer made such a long table.”
After cutting the dough for the dumplings, Poppy put them in a bowl and worked on cleaning up the table. It was covered with flour from their cooking endeavors.
When it was finally time for the meal, Poppy went to tell Elmer and Jacob. “It’s time to eat.” She wasn’t at all surprised to see Jacob helping sand the chair Elmer was making.
Both men got to their feet. “What are we having?” Elmer asked.
“Chicken and dumplings.”
Elmer looked at Jacob. “I’m sorry, but there’s not going to be enough food for you.”
Jacob smiled, shaking his head. “Not even one bite?”
“Not by the time I’m done,” Elmer said, leading the way into the house.
Jacob enjoyed watching Poppy walk to the house in front of them. She was slender and pretty. He could marry a girl like her.
When they got to the dining room, everyone took their seat. Poppy helped get all the food on the table, and then she automatically bowed her head for the prayer. Elmer’s prayer thanked God for bringing Jacob to them and said he hoped they would become fast friends.
Throughout the meal, conversation ebbed and flowed around them. Laughter and the clinking of cutlery filled the room, but beneath the din, a silent exchange unfolded between Poppy and Jacob. Each time their eyes met, words seemed unnecessary.
When talk turned to Jacob’s plans for a dairy farm, his answers were concise, painting a picture of toil and dedication. Yet, there lurked shadows behind his words, spaces where details should have been. Poppy listened intently, trying her very best to understand the man.
“What do you think of Clover Creek? Is it a great deal different from wherever you’re from?” Poppy asked.
“Change is necessary sometimes,” Jacob responded. “Survival requires adaptation.” His gaze drifted to the window. For a moment, his expression was veiled, hinting at a history marked by loss.
“It is,” Poppy agreed softly, wishing she knew what brought the sadness into his eyes. “Sometimes survival is the only thing possible for a while, until we can learn to be happy again.”
As the evening waned, and guests began to depart, Sarah suggested Poppy make sure Jacob knew the way back to the boarding house.
Poppy was certain Jacob knew her sister was trying to get them alone for a few minutes, but he didn’t say anything about it, and neither did she.
“How long do you think you’ll be staying at the boarding house?” she asked.
Jacob shrugged. “I’m not sure. When I got to town on Friday, I ordered lumber for a house and a barn. I think as soon as I get the basic house built, I can move out there. It’ll be summer, and there’s no reason I can’t live with the bare necessities.” He looked at her. “You really like living here, don’t you?”
She nodded. “I remember being so scared when I was a little girl and we left Independence, and I was right to be scared. We lost both of our parents on the trail, which is why Sarah and Elmer had to raise us. But since we’ve settled here, everythingseems just a little bit better. How could someone ever wake up with the view here and not feel they were in the most beautiful place God created?”
He smiled, but it failed to reach his eyes. “I hope it’s like that for me as well. I love it here so far.”
“I do as well. I don’t see myself ever leaving Clover Creek. At this point, it’s all I know.”
“Would you mind if I walked you home from school tomorrow?” he asked. He wanted to spend his time focusing on his farm, but she seemed like a likely candidate for a wife. He wanted children soon. He had no other family now that his brother had passed, and he didn’t like knowing he was the last of his blood.
“I’d like that,” she said with a smile. Perhaps he was as attracted to her as she was to him. She liked the idea.
“I’ll see you at four then,” he said with a smile and a wave, as he hurried away toward the boarding house. As he walked, his mind was still on Poppy. “She’ll do. She’ll make beautiful babies.”
*****
Poppy stood on the steps of the schoolhouse, watching as the children scattered, running off toward home, most of them needing to hurry to get chores done. It was only two weeks before school was out for the summer, and the older boys had already begun staying home so they could help in the fields.
“Miss Smith?” a voice called from behind.
