“Is it strange for you to spend time with Everett outside of work?”Sally asked.“I know he’s your employer...”
“Not at all,” he said.“I worried it would be, but it doesn’t bother me.He’s much more personable than I imagined he’d be.I’m surprised at all the work they’re willing to do to help us.”
“You know Everett better than I do, but Belle has been my friend for a long time.She’s a good woman, and I would assume he’s a good man, simply because she so obviously loves him.”
Tom nodded.“He’s a very fair employer.I’ve been nothing but happy working there.The hours are long, but the pay is good.”
“Did you ever talk to your friend about getting a bride?I can’t remember his name...”
“Jasper, and yes, he’s already got a bride coming.I’m trying to remember her name.Does Agnes sound familiar?”
Sally couldn’t help but smile.“Agnes is the girl I told you about who was thinking of coming here!She’ll fit right in, I’m sure.”
“I’ll tell him you approve.”
“Not that my approval matters to anyone, but I’ll be happy to see her and help her settle in.”
“How did it go with the Thompson’s baby?”
Sally sighed.“It was a long afternoon.He fussed every minute he was awake, and I had trouble settling him.Belle thinks he’s teething.”
“I thought you’d appreciate the day off from the hard work you’ve been doing.”
“Well, I did the laundry while I was there, and I cooked their supper.So, it wasn’t an easy day.Those diapers were disgusting.”
Tom smiled.“I’m sure they were.It’s good practice for when you become a mother.”
Sally nodded, worried that she wasn’t patient enough to have a child.She’d always wanted them, but after one day with Bertie, she was questioning herself.“I learned a lot today.I’ve never really been around babies.”
He nodded slowly.“I suppose you wouldn’t have been.It makes sense to me.”
Her mind whirled for a moment as she tried to think of a new topic.Anything but continuing to talk about her day with Bertie.“Are you planning on building a log structure for the pigs or something more like a house?”
“Log.It will be a great deal cheaper that way.Though Everett did offer to donate the lumber since we’ll be sharing the meat from the pigs.”
“It’s up to you how you want to do it,” she said.“As long as there is adequate space for them, and they are kept warm enough, nothing else really matters to me.”
“Do you think I’m being prideful not accepting his offer of lumber?”
Sally shook her head.“I think it’s between the two of you.It’s fair that they help us build, but you decide if they should help with the cost of the pen.”
After the supper dishes were finished, Tom pulled her down onto his lap and kissed her.“I’m happy with everything you’re doing to improve this place.I can’t express how good it is to have a wife who looks toward the future.”
“I’m happy to have the opportunity.Remember, I’ve been dreaming about coming here since the first letters from Belle started arriving at the hotel.We would all gather around and read the letters aloud after we’d finished work for the day.She was writing a good number of us, so some days we’d get ten letters all at once, but we would only read one per night.It gave us all our dreams back.”
“What do you mean?”Tom asked.“How did it give you your dreams back?”
Sally frowned, trying to find the right words to explain what she meant.“The hotel was fair, in that it paid us a decent wage and provided a place for us to live while we worked.But some of the men who frequented our restaurant were...well...they liked to corner the waitresses and touch them.Maggie was fired for how she reacted when one of them pinched her bottom.It was unfair, and we all knew it.I even went to the manager and tried to talk him into letting her come back, but he wouldn’t.He thought as waitresses, we should be willing to do whatever the customer wanted.”She shook her head.“After a few months of that, you start losing your dreams.Belle was the only one who seemed to be able to keep them, but when she left, we were all sad for a while.Then her letters started coming, and we dreamed about coming here.One of the waitresses had, so we all could.”
“I think I understand.I’m glad you’re not there anymore.”
“So am I.I know I’m much happier married to you.”She pressed her lips to his, and soon, he was the one in control, initiating passion between them.
*****
THE NEXT DAY WITH BERTIEwas the same as the first.Sally didn’t attempt to wash diapers again, but she scrubbed the floors and fixed supper when the baby wasn’t screaming.Sally was starting to believe he simply didn’t like her, which was silly, but true.
When Belle returned from hunting, her cheeks were flushed and she looked as happy as Sally had ever seen her.Sally was pacing the cabin, trying to calm the baby.
