Page 145 of Conveniently Wed
“They’re in the cabin.”
Finally, Leah let out a sigh. Maybe another day or two wouldn’t matter so much. Pushing away from the barn, she wrapped a hand through the crook of Miriam’s arm. “All right then, I’ll stay until Ol’ Mose comes back through. But then you needn’t worry about me any more after that.”
Leah couldn’t believe how quickly the morning flew. As much as her body craved a warm bath and relaxation, she needed to earn her keep and not be a burden. So, she swept out the cabin while Miriam kneaded the bread dough for dinner. As they worked, the younger woman quizzed Leah about her trip on the steamboat. Then Miriam showed her how to clean out the barn and restock the hay and water in the stalls.
“We don’t keep most of the animals in the barn at night during the summer months. Just Bethany, the milk cow, and Gideon’s riding horse. The rest of ‘em run with the cattle, except the wagon team that stays in the corrals. We try not to feed hay any more than we have to. It’sawfulhard work to cut and store it.” Miriam rolled her eyes to emphasize that last point.
Leah brushed hay from her gown. Her whole body ached, but she dared to ask, “So what do we do next?”
Miriam motioned her out of the barn. “Now we go check the garden to see if my tomato plants are surviving. I just moved them to the ground last week so I want to make sure they took root. And while we walk, you can tell me all about where you grew up. I think you said it was Virginia?”
“Yes, in Richmond.”
Miriam’s eyes twinkled with a faraway, dreamy look. “Is Richmond a big city? Like New York and Chicago? With balls and parties every week?”
Leah’s lips curved a little. “I suppose Richmond is a big city, but not as big as New York. And yes, we had balls and parties—more often than I liked.”
Miriam’s eyes grew wide. “Did you wear those big hooped skirts and have servants to help you dress?”
“I wore hoops when they were the fashion. Now most of the skirts are slender through the sides but gather over big bustles in the back.”
They had reached a large garden plot with little green plants in long neat rows. Miriam scanned the entire section, then made her way to some leafy green shoots about ten inches tall.
“And did you have servants to help you dress?”
The Bryants lived such a simple life, she hated to talk about the lavish way she’d lived. But she had to answer, so she nodded. Hopefully, Miriam wouldn’t press for more details.
“And did you have servants to cook and clean for you? And drive your carriage? Did you have a carriage?”
She’d never realized so clearly how excessive and unnecessary that lifestyle had been. Had they really needed fifteen servants to keep house for herself and her father? But, it would have been unseemly for the Townsends to keep anything less.
“Did you, Leah?” Miriam looked up from where she was crouched by the plants.
Leah chose her words carefully. “We did have servants. And honestly, they were my closest friends. I used to giggle and play dolls with the housemaids when I was little. Then as I grew up, Emily was my companion and like an older sister to me.”
“I’ve always wanted a sister.” Miriam sighed wistfully. “I sort of had one a few years back, but she’s gone now.”
Leah raised an eyebrow, and Miriam explained. “Gideon took a wife a couple years after Pa and Mama died. But Jane died about a year after Gideon married her. I liked havin’ her around, but she always wanted to stay cooped up in the cabin. I think she was afraid to be outside or somethin’. I’m not real sure why, though.”
Poor Gideon. He’d lost everyone close to him except his baby sister—parents, wife, and now his brother. Is that why he was so quiet and somber? Despite their almost instant friendship, she didn’t really know Miriam well enough to ask such a personal question.
Thankfully, Miriam rose to her feet and motioned for Leah to follow. “And speaking of Gideon, we’d better get the midday meal ready before he gets back or we’ll have a grumpy man on our hands.” Miriam’s tone was light, but Leah could certainly imagine the man she’d seen last night might be grumpy—hungry or not.
Gideon did come in a short while later, the dog trotting by his leg. Miriam flashed her brother a warm smile as she poured white gravy over slices of bread.
“There he is. Ya hungry, big brother?”
He nodded, hanging his hat on the wall peg. “Yep.”
Leah stopped pouring coffee into the mugs on the table when the dog trotted up to greet her. She bent down to stroke the animal, his tail waving like a flag.
“What’s his name?” When she didn’t receive an immediate answer, she glanced up at Miriam, then her brother, waiting for someone to respond. Miriam seemed to be purposely ignoring her.
Finally, Gideon spoke. “Drifter.” His voice was deep and clear, but the man surely didn’t mince words.
Leah focused again on the sweet animal who pressed his face into her hand, eager for more scratching. His body was coveredwith a sort of flea-bitten bluish-gray fur. His face was a black mask, divided down the forehead by a strip of gray. He seemed to be intelligent by the way he kept his ears focused with the sounds of the room.
“Hey there, Drifter,” she crooned, rubbing the spots behind his ears with both thumbs. He responded by sharing a sloppy kiss which caught Leah right on the tip of her nose. A giggle sneaked out of her before she could stop it. “You’re a lover, I see.”
