Page 464 of Conveniently Wed
“I’ve neglected them this past year.”
Pa swung an arm around her shoulders as they moved into the kitchen. “Never you mind that now. We can’t look back, only forward.” He pulled out a chair for her, then sat down in his usual spot at the head of the table.
Katie smiled at the instant uproar as the girls poured in. “Dessert time,” Gracie said, jumping up and down before throwing herself onto Katie’s knee. The longing for a little one of her own hit afresh each time she held her sister. She worked hard to squelch that longing. What was the point when she didn’t even know if her marriage was going to survive?
“Ma, do you need help?” Katie tried to make herself heard above Gracie’s all too exuberant chatter.
“Jeanette is helping. We’ll have it ready in a snap.”
“I was thinking we should try and get to church on Sunday in Lacey Spring, as long as the weather holds,” Pa said. “The singing is a joy to behold. Want to join us, Katie girl?”
Her spirit jumped within her. “That’s a splendid idea. You’ll come too, won’t you, Ma?”
She turned from cutting the pie and shook her head.
Katie rolled her lower lip out, and Amelia laughed.
“You know how I feel about all that religious stuff,” Ma said. “When I lost the twins, I lost all hope God cared about what goes on down here.”
Pa’s face dropped, but he said nothing.
“I’ll come,” Amelia said.
“You just want to see your beau, Edmund,” Jeanette teased.
Amelia turned a bright shade of red. “So what if I do?”
“Now, girls. Whoever wants to come can come for whatever reason they like.” Pa winked at Amelia, and she smiled.
The chatter and love of family conversing and eating pie seeped into Katie’s heart, filling some of her longings. The past year, she’d given up the dream of having a family of her own, but since she became a Christian, the idea kept pressing in. Did their marriage have hope?
She pushed back from the table. “Ma, you’ve got to stop feeding me all these yummy desserts every night. My dresses are getting so tight.”
Her ma waved her hand. “Fiddlesticks, Katherine. You could eat until the chickens roost and you’d never gain weight. Just like your?—”
“Nope.” Katie placed her hand on her abdomen and pressed her dress in to prove her point.
Ma’s eyes popped wide. She rose from the table and busied herself with cleanup.
“Should I walk you home?” Pa asked.
Before she could answer, Ma cut in, “Jeb, I need a break, and since you monopolize all the conversations with Katie these days, I’d like her to join me out on the porch to enjoy one of the last warm evenings before she runs away.”
The girls got up to follow, but Ma waved them away. “Just the two of us.” She pointed to the pile of dishes in the sink. “That’ll keep you busy.”
“Aw, Ma.”
But Ma ushered Katie outside, and the screen door slammed behind them.
“How I remember those days.” Katie laughed as she settled in a rocking chair beside Ma’s.
Silence slipped over them, and Katie enjoyed the singing crickets, even if the breeze was a tad chilly.
“Did you want to talk about something, Ma? You had a funny look in your eyes, and I know when something’s up.” She smiled to keep things light and leaned forward in her rocker.
Something in Ma’s sly smile gave her pause. “Could you be in the family way?”
The words slapped her backward. A baby? She shook her head. “I had hoped so long ago...but it never happened. And Josiah and I haven’t been close for a long time. We uh… It’s a long story.” A heated flush washed over her. Good thing the lighting was dim.
