AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“They attend the church we were married in, so you’ll meet them on Sunday.” He walked through the kitchen into the bedroom. “This is the room we’ll share. There are two other bedrooms upstairs that you can explore later. I just want you to see the basics before I head out to work for the night.”
She frowned. “I won’t have time to make a real meal before you go!”
“That’s all right. My friend’s wife brought over a big pot of chicken and dumplings for us to warm and eat today. You don’t have to start cooking until tomorrow if that’s your preference. You must be tired after a week on the train.”
She smiled. “We’ll see how that works out. I’ll try to cook if I can force myself to do it.”
He chuckled. “But if you could heat up the chicken and dumplings…”
“I’d be happy to.” She went to his ice box, saying a silent prayer of thanks that he had the modern appliance, and pulled out the soup he’d mentioned. Starting the stove, she put the pot in the middle of the stove where it would get the most heat. She’d have to constantly stir it, but at least it would heat up quickly.
While it warmed, she investigated the bedroom she’d share with Leonard, noting that he’d placed her trunk at the foot of the bed. It seemed odd to think she’d be sharing a bed with a stranger, but with Leonard, it didn’t feel unnatural.
She set the table in between stirring the food, and when it was ready, she served up two big bowls of the chicken dish. “I hope you’re hungry!”
He nodded. “Starving. I usually eat a little earlier in the day. I take a meal to work with me, and then I eat when I get home. I hope that won’t be too strange for you.”
She shook her head. “I’m nothing if not flexible.”
After a short prayer of thanks, they dug into the meal, and Constance was pleased to realize her chicken and dumplings were much better than the ones she was eating. These weren’t bad, but she really preferred her own. It was good to realize that.
After the meal, he gave her a quick peck on the cheek and disappeared out the door. She did the dishes and unpacked her things, looking in the ice box for something she could serve for supper. She felt as if she was auditioning for the part of wife, and she wanted to start off on the right foot, not serving something some other woman had made.
There was a chicken in the ice box, and she pulled it out, planning to make fried chicken with mashed potatoes and a cream gravy to go with it. Surely, he would be happy with her serving something so delicious.
She glanced at the clock, seeing that it was only four in the afternoon, and she didn’t have to have supper ready until midnight. So, she put the chicken back into the ice box and looked around for some cleaning that needed to be done, but everything was spotless. Why did the man need a wife if not to clean for him? She had no idea, but she’d look around and find something to do.
After a short while of exploring the house, she yawned and realized the perfect answer was for her to take a nap so she could stay awake until midnight. There was no way to sleep late on a train, so she had been up early every day since leaving Beckham.
She took a nice long nap, and then settled herself at the table with paper, pen, and ink to write a letter home and let everyone know she’d arrived safely.
Her letter to her mother was short and sweet, explaining she’d arrived safely and was now married and settling into her new house. Then she wrote a second letter to Elizabeth Tandy, telling her the same thing. She was thankful that Elizabeth had sent her to South Dakota. It seemed like it would be a pleasant place for her to live.
She still had a few hours before Leonard was to arrive home, so she went from room to room, thinking about the changes she wanted to make. She wanted red and white gingham curtains and a matching tablecloth for the kitchen. Hopefully Leonard wouldn’t mind if she bought the supplies the following day. She would make herself crazy without work to do.
She made a list of the things that needed to be refreshed, and then she went into the kitchen to cook supper. It would be ready early, but that couldn’t be a bad thing. There was no bread anywhere, so she mixed up a batch and set it out to rise before she mixed the breading for the chicken.
She peeled a small mound of potatoes to eat with the chicken and once they were on to boil, she punched down the bread. Thirty minutes before she expected Leonard, she put the bread in the oven and fried the chicken. It was her first meal to cook as a married woman, and she wanted it to be just perfect.
She even had most of the dishes from the meal done when Leonard walked in the door, tired from his hard day at work. She fixed their plates while he washed his hands, and they sat together to eat. “I hope you like fried chicken.”
“Of course, I do!” he said. “And this smells delicious.”
They held hands during their prayer, and then they both dug into the food she’d prepared. “I think there should be enough for your meal at work tomorrow,” she said softly.
“I’m just thrilled you made fresh bread. I buy bread from the bakery, but it’s just not the same as smelling it as you walk into your house.”
She smiled, nodding. “I agree. I love baked goods, so I hope you don’t mind eating them a lot.”
“You will not hear me complain.” He finished off his mashed potatoes and reached for more. “This gravy is wonderful.”
“It’s what my mother always made with fried chicken, so she taught me to do the same.”
Leonard smiled. “I’ll have to thank her when we meet.”
“She’d be pleased. Oh, I wrote a couple of letters and need to post them tomorrow.”
“Easy enough. I’ll take you to the mercantile, and you can mail them from there.”
