Page 561 of Conveniently Wed
He’d come to love her so much that he wanted to clasp her even closer to him and not let her go. Both of them reveling in their love. Since his father had taught him to respect women, he’d never experienced the intimacy that should be saved until after the wedding. He knew the mechanics of it, but could only imagine the emotional depth of the actual event.
He’d been so unfair to Lorinda. Asking her to accept a marriage in name only had been a selfish mistake. One he’d regret to his dying day.
She’d been all right with it at first, but was that still her feeling? Especially now that she would have to help him raise not only her son, but Miriam’s as well. How could he find out without pushing her...maybe even away from him. Franklin shook his head. He didn’t want that to happen.
When he’d gotten home from Breckenridge yesterday, Lorinda had been nursing the new baby boy. She looked happy and satisfied. But was she really? Maybe she’d had time to think about the consequences of what had transpired. Had sheconsidered what their future would be now? He didn’t have the right words to ask her. Why could he talk to everyone else, but not to his wife about what mattered?
As he rode toward the house, he gave a small salute to the men standing guard, and each one gave an answering wave. Everything must’ve been quiet while he was away. He was thankful to have men he could trust working for him.
But he’d trusted Marvin for a long time. Hopefully, he’d matured enough to really recognize a man of integrity when he saw one. When he arrived at the barn, he took care of his horse, then headed toward the house.
After taking off his coat, he stuffed his gloves in the pockets and hung it up along with his Stetson. Franklin found Lorinda once again in the parlor near the fireplace. Even after wearing the lined leather gloves, his fingers felt like icicles. He leaned against the mantel, close enough to the fire to warm him up, but not in a place where he’d keep the warmth from reaching his wife and children. Children? That had a nice ring to it.
“You’re back sooner than I thought you’d be.” Her blue eyes looked as warm and welcoming as a summer sky.
He glanced toward the basket beside her where the new baby slept. Michael sat on the rug nearby playing with the wooden blocks Franklin had carved for him. He didn’t seem to be affected by the new guy in the house. Almost as if Franklin had called his name, Michael’s gaze shot toward him.
“Da, da, da, da.”
Drool dripped from his chin, and Lorinda took her hanky and swiped it away. He picked up a block in each hand and started banging them together. Franklin figured all the noise would disturb the new baby, but it didn’t.
“I didn’t linger, because I wanted to get home to my family.” His smile encompassed all of them.
“Now that everything with Miriam has been taken care of, there’s something we must discuss.” Lorinda sounded so earnest. “She didn’t have time to tell us what she wanted to name her son.”
“Ourson.” Franklin was thankful she didn’t have anything more serious to discuss.
“Yes...that’s what I meant.” She heaved a sigh. “I don’t know how to handle something like this.”
“We didn’t get a lot of time to talk yesterday, since it was so busy.” He dropped into the wingback chair opposite the one where his wife sat. “I talked to the lawyer. The paper Miriam wrote and signed will stand up in court, so we can legally adopt him when we want to. Until then, he’s ours anyway.”
“So we need to decide what to nameourson.” Lorinda reached down and lifted him into her arms without disturbing his slumber, cuddling him close to her heart. “Do you have any ideas?”
“We can’t name him after his real father. I don’t think she wants him to even know who that man is.” A slight throbbing took up residence in his head, right behind his eyes.
“Since he’s to be your son, we could name him Franklin. Michael is named for his birth father.” She began to rock back and forth in the chair as she held the baby closer.
The throbbing accelerated a little. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. We need a different name for him.”
“All right.” She seemed flustered. “Can you think of another name you would want to use?”
“How about your father?”
The words had barely left his mouth when a look of horror covered her face. “No!”
He’d never heard such a strong exclamation from her. What had she endured at the hands of that man to bring such a response? Anger welled up in him against the man he’d nevermet. He thought he remembered her saying she didn’t have any more relatives when Mike was killed. Must mean her father was dead as well. What had the man done to her? Was he the reason she had a hard time trusting men?
Franklin wished Lorinda felt safe enough to share her pain with him. She knew all about his situation with Marvin and Miriam.Please Lord, let her tell me soon.
Lorinda laid the baby back in the basket and tucked the blankets close around him as he slept. “How about your father’s name?”
When she looked back up at him, her face wore a serene mask, but he could tell she was fighting to keep it that way. He wanted to take her in his arms and tell her everything would be all right. His heart ached for her. Franklin wanted to make things better for her, but how could he when she wouldn’t share with him about what had happened? Frustration gripped him.
“What was your father’s name, Franklin?”
He drew his thoughts back to their conversation. “Andrew...Andrew Vine.”
A smile lit her face, even reaching her eyes. “Andrew is a good, strong name. He’ll need a name like that.”
