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"Sounds like a wonderful place." Prudence was eager to see it for herself.
"It is, but it's a far cry from Boston," he warned.
Prudence totally ignored him. Her thoughts were elsewhere. "After the church is built, you could build a large hall beside it. It could double as a schoolhouse until an appropriate one could be built. Then Stewart could have a spring dance just like the one at the fort. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"
He agreed with an eager nod, surprised at her enthusiasm. But then she had told him often enough that she was "adaptable." He was beginning to doubt that and to believe that Prudence belonged in the West. It was in her blood. She had taken to the lifestyle too fast and too easily. For some inexplicable reason, she belonged here. She had come home.
CHAPTER 19
"This is wonderful!" Prudence said as Zac reached up to help her down from the wagon.
He placed her gently on the ground beside him and glanced around, wondering if they were looking at the same town, Stewart. There was the blacksmith building as they rode in, the small jailhouse next to that, and then down at the opposite end of the wide dirt street to the right was the general store where they now stood.
"Wonderful?" he repeated, wanting to make certain he had heard her correctly.
Prudence grabbed his hand and squeezed it in excitement. "Yes, just imagine the possibilities. A church, right over there," she pointed to the right, "nestled amongst those giant trees, and to the side of it, a perfect clearing for a church hall to hold socials and dances. And before you know it, the street will be lined with stores… wonderful, absolutely wonderful."
She marched up the two steps, tugging a bewildered Zac along beside her to enter the dry goods store.
Prudence removed her bonnet and adjusted the short cape of her gray outfit. She wanted to make a good impression on these two women who had braved the wilderness to establish their business.
The wide open room reminded her of the mercantile. It was stocked to the brim with an extensive variety of merchandise.
"Anybody minding this store?" Zac called out humorously.
"Gosh almighty, you're back!" a woman's high-pitched voice squealed from somewhere in the back room.
In a flash, a short, round barrel of a woman came rushing through the swinging doors that separated the back room from the front. She headed straight for Zac.
Zac opened his arms in greeting and took the impact of her solid form without flinching. "So you missed me, Bertha?" He hugged the woman, who only reached his chest, tightly to him.
Bertha giggled like a young schoolgirl and stepped back, her cheeks flushed and her fingers nervously patting her brown curly hair that refused to stay confined by two ivory combs. "I most certainly did."
"I missed everyone here myself," he admitted. "And I brought a surprise back with me." Zac slipped his arm around Prudence's waist, bringing her to stand before him. "Bertha, I'd like you to meet my wife, Prudence Agatha Stewart."
"Gosh almighty, your wife!" she cried and grabbed Prudence's hand, shaking the life out of it. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Prudence. Actually, a shock, since no one here in Stewart ever expected Zac to marry. We figured he'd have to search pretty far and probably have to pay a woman to marry the likes of him."
Bertha stopped shaking Prudence's hand and stared wide-eyed in embarrassment at her. "Gosh, he didn't have to pay you, did he?"
Prudence laughed and shook her head. "No, but the decision wasn't really left up to him."
It was Bertha's turn to laugh. "A decision concerning Zac not left up to him? Not likely."
Prudence turned quickly and looked up into her husband's face. He winked at her and she wondered over Bertha's reply. Had Zac been forced to marry her? Or hadn't he?
"Where's Silver Fox?" Zac asked. "I want Pru to meet her."
"She should be here soon. She went to deliver some items to Charlie Biddle that arrived late yesterday," Bertha explained.
"Charlie still keeping you dangling?" Zac teased.
Bertha dismissed his words with a wave of her hand and a coy smile. "No sir. I told him that if he expects my home cooking so frequently, then he better put a ring on my finger or he could eat his own horrible cooking permanently."
Zac craned his neck to get a better look at Bertha's hand. "Don't see a ring."
Bertha blushed, her cheeks matching the color of her pink gingham dress. "Charlie's traveling to Plattsmouth in a few weeks on business. He's getting it then."
"Congratulations. It's about time," Zac said.
Prudence was about to offer her own congratulations when another woman's voice, soft and sweet, interrupted. "You've finally come home, Zac Stewart."
Bertha turned quickly, anxious to be the first to spread the news of Zac's marriage. "He's married, Silver Fox. Do you believe Zac actually got married? The poor, dear girl doesn't know what she's in for." Bertha giggled.
