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“Let’s go back now. Your pa should be home soon, and supper is almost done. I just need to make the gravy.”
Nancy could carry her basket back with no trouble, but Bertie had to put his on top of the apples in the wagon. It was just too heavy for a boy of his size to carry.
They carried all the apples inside the house and put them in a large basket where they would store them for cooking or distribution to the other women in George’s family.
Nancy set the table while Bertie played on the floor with the younger two children. Jessica hurriedly made the gravy for supper, realizing it was even later than she’d thought.
George came in and washed his hands while Jessica was finishing up the gravy. “Why isn’t supper ready?” he asked, frowning at her.
Jessica closed her eyes for a moment, and then smiled sweetly. “I spent the day scrubbing the walls and cleaning the kitchen, including the stove. I finished up all the fall cleaning, and then the children and I went for a walk to pick apples, so I could make apple pie for dessert tomorrow. I’m sorry to inconvenience you in my attempt to make dessert for the family.”
“Just hurry and get it on the table. I work hard and expect supper to be ready when I get home.”
Instead of kicking him, Jessica stirred the gravy faster, wishing she knew exactly what to do about her difficult husband. He didn’t even seem to interact with his children much. She knew he was still in mourning after the death of his wife, but that was no reason to be cruel to others. No reason at all.
When Jessica put the food on the table and sat, George prayed before she was even settled. He obviously was ready to eat and he was going to do it as quickly as he could.
Jessica was too angry to try to make conversation with the stubborn man, so she asked the older children what they’d learned in school that day.
Nancy shrugged. “We had to write a story in class today. The teacher has never let us make anything up for an assignment before, and it was great fun.”
Bertie frowned. “While they had fun, we had to learn our plus fives. It was hard!”
Jessica smiled. “What’s two plus five?”
Bertie looked at her with a blank look for a moment before responding. “Seven. No more arithmetic!”
“Sounds like you learned well.” Jessica fed a bite of potatoes with a bit of gravy to the baby. It felt good to be caught up on the housework. “Tomorrow I’ll be going through all of the clothing and seeing if there’s anything that needs to be mended.”
Nancy looked down at her too-tight dress. “I don’t need to be mended. I need a whole new dress.”
“And so you do. I saw some fabric on top of the armoire in the baby’s room. I’ll see if there’s enough to make you a pretty dress. Is Johnny still chasing you at recess?” Jessica asked.
Nancy nodded. “I told him he was a pest, but he didn’t stop.”
By the look in Nancy’s eye, Jessica could tell Nancy secretly liked being chased. “Should I make an apple pie or an apple cake for dessert tomorrow?”
“I’ve never had apple cake,” Bertie said. “Is it delicious?”
“I think so. I even like it more than apple pie.”
“I think we should have apple cake then,” George said, feeling left out. His wife of two days already knew more about his children than he did. It was as if he’d just woken up and realized his children had kept going after their mother died.
Jessica nodded. It was the first time George had made his opinion known of his own accord when he wasn’t angry. “I’ll make an apple cake then.”
“If you feel like picking fruit, there are rows of raspberries and blackberries out behind the barn. Enough for a great many pies and cakes.”
“I’ll look tomorrow. Mary Sue is coming to sit with the children during nap time so I can explore the farm and pick any ripe fruit I can find.”
“Too bad you weren’t here earlier. It would be nice to have some rhubarb.”
“I can pick that in the spring,” Jessica responded.
“There’s a strawberry patch out behind the barn as well. That was where we planted all the berries.”
“It’s way too late in the season for strawberries, of course, but I’ll pick them next year.” She looked forward to planting her own kitchen garden and having the food she wanted at her fingertips.
“I usually plow a big section of the land in the back of the house for a kitchen garden every spring. Will that work for you?”
