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Chapter Four
Sydney realized when she woke just before noon the following day that Susan had been right. It was going to take her a few days to recover from the long journey, followed by the bicycle ride in such a hot and humid climate.
She had lunch with Susan and Alice, who had decided to join them, and the children who were not yet in school.
The topic of conversation didn’t turn to Lewis. It started and ended there. “What did you think of Lewis?” Alice asked. “Isn’t he a handsome, kind man?”
“He was very nice,” Sydney replied. She didn’t want to say too much with his mother and sister-in-law sitting right there.
Susan grinned. “He was certainly infatuated with you. He asked what his father and I think of you, and we told him we would readily approve of a courtship.”
“We haven’t discussed that yet.” Not outright. She’d asked, and he’d given her most of an answer, but she was waiting to see him again before she really knew anything.
“Well, you should!” Alice said. “I understand your parents don’t know you’re here?”
“They don’t. If they did, my mother would have a man here taking me home to Beckham, whether I was kicking and screaming or not. I told my father what I was doing in a note but asked him not to tell my mother until I’d been gone for a full week. I was afraid she would find me somehow and force me to marry a boar…or a bore.” Sydney spelled both of the homonyms out so the others would know what she meant.
Susan and Alice both laughed. “I would think that means you need to marry quickly, though, doesn’t it?” Alice asked, not willing to give up the subject.
“You’re like a dog with a bone!” Sydney said. “Yes, it would be best if I married quickly. I do worry my parents will find me here.”
“I think Lewis is a good choice,” Alice said.
“As do I,” Susan echoed her younger sister.
“I like him fine, but I’m certainly not in love with him.”
“That comes with time,” the two sisters said in unison. All of them laughed.
“You both say that because you were mail-order brides and initially your marriages were loveless.”
Susan sighed. “You came here to be a mail-order bride. Why not at least consider Lewis? I promise you he’s as well-trained as I could manage, and he rarely pees on the ceiling in the bathroom anymore.”
Sydney let out a bark of laughter. “Did he do that when he was young?”
Susan nodded. “He once even asked my husband to paint a target on the ceiling, and David considered it! Until they talked to me of course.”
“I’m glad you were able to talk some sense into them,” Sydney said. “It sounds like he’s been a difficult child.”
Susan shrugged. “I thought my life was over when I realized what Albert and Lewis were really like. But I got to know them and grew to love them both quickly. They were definitely no worse than Alice was.”
Alice gave her sister her best innocent look. “I never tried to pee on the ceiling, though.”
Susan simply shook her head.
“If Lewis wants to court me, I’m more than willing.”
“Just stay open-minded about it,” Susan said. “You need to marry, and he’s available, and I know he’s attracted to you.”
“That’s true…”
Alice nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, give him a chance. You two should come over for supper tonight!” She clapped her hands together excitedly. “I’ll make chicken and dumplings, and we’ll all talk. I want to get to know you better too. You’re my new best friend whether we like it or not.”
Sydney smiled. “I think we both like it.”
Alice grinned. “Yes, we do!”
After their lunch, Sydney looked around the house to see if anything needed done, but she saw nothing. “I’d be happy to help with anything you need. Would you like me to do some laundry? Wash windows? Scrub floors? I know how!”
