Unconventional Series Collection Read online

  "Yes, I heard."

  Color tinged Abigail's cheeks. How long had he been standing there?

  Long into the night, Abigail lay in her lumpy bed and thought about each family member—Ty, so young and helpless, needing the care of a mother; Jenny, shouldering responsibilities that belonged to a mother; Luke, heartbroken and bitter over the loss of his mother; and Brant, selflessly thinking of the needs of his children, but longing for his first wife. Abigail turned her head into her pillow and silently wept.

  Chapter 5: Ornery Chickens

  Muffled sounds jerked Abigail awake. Reaching for her pocket watch that she'd set on the floor beside her bed, she barely made out the time in the light before dawn; four fifty. What time does this family get up? She was used to rising between six and six thirty, but this was ridiculous. Groaning, she sat on the side of the bed and stretched. Might as well join everyone and hope this day goes smoother than yesterday.

  By the light of her kerosene lamp, she washed in the basin of water and dressed in one of her most sturdy dresses. Because she could barely see her reflection in the wavy mirror, she had to comb and pin her hair into its usual bun from years of repetition.

  Her body screamed that she needed to make a trip to the outhouse soon. She'd been holding her bladder most of the night because she didn't want to use the chamber pot.

  Tentatively opening her door to the smell of fresh coffee, she peered around it to see Brant, Luke, and Jenny sitting at the table, cups in hand and talking. She usually sipped hot tea with a little cream and sugar every morning, but the bracing aroma smelled heavenly. She stepped past her door.

  "Hello, Miz Abby," Jenny said cheerily.

  "Mornin', Ma'am," Luke said solemnly after his father nudged him.

  Brant smiled. "Good morning, Abby. I didn't expect you to be up so early. You may want to sleep late the next few days until you feel rested from your trip."

  "Good morning, everyone. I'm not feeling overly tired so I'd like to rise when you do." She stifled a yawn and watched that barely visible quirk of Brant's mouth.

  "Come join us for coffee. We usually take a few minutes each morning to discuss the day. Then we work a couple of hours or so while Jenny collects eggs and makes breakfast. After that, we work until noon, eat lunch, work until around five, then clean up and have supper around six."

  Abigail motioned to the door. "I think I should uh…"

  "Oh, sure; nature's call," Brant said easily.

  Abigail stepped onto the porch and inhaled the crisp air. Dawn's light was just peeking over the horizon and cast a magical glow all around. For the briefest of moments she felt happy and carefree. Following the path to the outhouse that Jenny had shown her the evening before, she longed for an indoor bathroom like the one she'd had in Philadelphia. Sighing, she opened the door to the small and smelly enclosure and did her business.

  Returning to the cabin, Brant motioned toward the coffee pot. "Would you like some coffee?"

  "Yes, thank you."

  He started to rise.

  "No, I'll get it." Abigail walked to the sink to rinse her hands and then reached into the open cupboard for a tin. Picking up a ragged pot holder, she grasped the metal pot from off the stove and poured the blackest coffee she'd ever seen. Returning to the table she sat beside Brant when he patted the spot next to him on the bench. The brush of his shoulder sent tingles down her spine. "What time does the baby wake up?" she asked.

  "Usually around breakfast time. Do you like sugar in your coffee?"

  "I do."

  He scooted a half full mason jar and a spoon encrusted with sugar toward her. Not seeing another, clean spoon, she hesitated and then stirred a little sugar in her drink and sipped the steaming brew. It was so bitter she almost gagged. Everyone was watching her so she murmured, "Wonderful coffee."

  This time the quirk of Brant's lips was unmistakable. "Did you sleep well?"

  "Um, yes. Thank you."

  Jenny saved the awkwardness everyone was obviously feeling by chattering about the fairytale Abigail had begun the night before. "I can't wait to hear how it ends. Too bad Ty fell asleep and missed it, but I'll fill him in on what happened."

  Brant smiled at Abigail over Jenny's head and the simple gesture made her breathless. He was so handsome and rugged, not like soft city men. He stood and stretched. "Time to get goin' Luke. Leave your book behind."

  Luke gave him a defiant glance, but walked to the mantle and dropped his book on it.

  Brant paused at the door and reached for his hat hanging on a peg. "We'll be back in a couple of hours." He settled his hat on his head and tipped the brim with his index finger. The innocent motion started Abigail's heart hammering again. Luke grabbed his own hat and scurried after his father. To cover her flusters, she said, "Jenny, what can I do to help you?"

  Jenny reached for the coffee tins and started clearing them off the table. "After I get these washed it'll be light enough for us to go to the hen house. I usually make biscuits and fried eggs with bacon for Pa and Luke."

  Abigail assisted Jenny by drying the cups and putting them away. An appreciation of the difficult position Brant was in, and his need for a wife in a marriage of convenience, wedged itself into her heart. She remembered him expressing in his first letter his desire that his children return to school. Was money so tight he couldn't afford to hire help and that's why Luke was home? As for Jenny, caring for her baby brother was a full time job. Besides being a mother to his children, perhaps Abigail could help financially. Maybe Brant would allow her to repay him for the passage to Two Rivers that he'd insisted on purchasing. Although not wealthy, she had a small savings. Look at you, already making plans.

  Jenny reached and grabbed a basket off the shelf. "Let's go see how many eggs we got today."

  "What about Ty? Should we wake him?"

  "No, ma'am. I blocked the door so he can't get out of the bedroom. He probably won't wake up 'til we get back anyway."

  Abigail glanced at Jenny's bedroom door and noticed a leather strap wrapped around the handle and stretched to a hook on the frame. She smiled at the child's ingenuity.

  At the front door, Jenny reached for her bonnet on a peg. "Ma always made me wear a bonnet when I went outside. I think I can find one of hers for you."

  Abigail coughed. "Ah, you know, I have a straw hat I was going to wear. I'll go get it." She rushed to her room and opened her trunk, searching for the little hat box holding her work hat. Settling it in place, she tied the ribbons under her chin and hurried back to Jenny.

  Jenny grinned, "I like your fancy hat."

  Abigail stifled a smile. The hat was definitely not fancy. "Thank you, Jenny. Between your bonnet and my straw hat, we shall collect eggs in style."

  Jenny giggled. "You're funny, Miz Abby." She turned toward the door but stopped and looked back at Abigail. "And you tell great stories. I can't wait to hear more about the Land of Mysterious Places."

  "And I can't wait to tell you more about it."

  Stepping onto the porch, Abigail once again enjoyed the lovely morning that hinted of rain. In the distance she could see dark clouds.

  Jenny saw them, too. "Looks like it might rain later. I like the rain. Sometimes we get lightening. Mama loved storms. She said it was 'cause we all got to stay indoors and talk 'til they were over. She'd pass around cookies and read a book to everyone. Sometimes she and Pa would go in their bedroom for what she called 'special talks', while me and Luke read or did schoolwork and Ty slept."

  Abigail bit her trembling lip at the girl's shared remembrances. How could she even come close to being half the wife and mother of the woman who had born these children?

  Wally darted around the side of the cabin and followed them to a wooden structure covered with wire mesh. The child opened the chicken coop door and chickens scattered and squawked when they stepped inside. Going from nest box to nest box, Jenny began retrieving eggs, sometimes reaching under an unhappy hen.

  Abigail wanted to help and began
pulling eggs from boxes on the opposite side.

  * * *

  Brant circled the Barn and stopped when he saw Jenny and Abby enter the hen house. Now was his chance to watch a city girl in action. Leaning against the siding, he picked up a long straw to chew on and wondered how their best layer hen, Prissy, would take to a stranger. He watched Jenny explain the task of gathering eggs from cranky hens and had to stifle a laugh; first, at another of Abby's ridiculous straw hats, and then at the way she'd extend her hand to reach under a hen, only to jerk it back when the hen moved. When she tried distracting the bird by wiggling her fingers on one side of it, and then quickly reaching under its body with her other hand, he almost lost it. She stepped next to Prissy and he heard Jenny say, "You best let me get Prissy's eggs."

  Too late, her attempt to distract the ornery hen sent the bird flying directly at her. She squealed, stepped backwards, and fell on her backside, which sent all the hens into a tizzy. Brant ran to the coop and jerked the door open, leaned down to scoop Abby into his arms, and then backed out of the enclosure while Jenny grabbed Prissy's eggs. Still holding Abby in his arms, he busted out laughing. She had chicken poop on her cheek and her silly hat sat askew with strands of hair pulled awry from her bun.

  She gave him a shocked look and said primly, "Please put me down, Mr. Samson."

  He choked back another laugh and righted her. Jenny ran up beside them. "You okay, Miz Abby?"

  Brant watched her blush as she tried to compose herself. She reached to right her hat and rubbed her cheek. When she felt the poop, her eyes got big and she stared at him. He grabbed his bandana from his pocket and began gently dabbing the stuff off her face. Her look of horror had him thinking she would be saying goodbye soon and he was surprised by his mixed feelings over her departure.

  Unexpectedly, when he'd swiped the last of the bird dropping away, her mouth quirked and something that sounded like a chuckle escaped. Then she placed a hand over her mouth and laughed uproariously. Jenny joined her and all three of them bent over laughing. She waved her hand in the air. "I have never been in such an undignified position in my life."

  Brant's eyes rested on her beautiful smile and thoughts of undignified positions had his mind going in a different direction. He clamped a vise on his thoughts. Movement shifted his gaze toward the corral to where Luke was watching them. Abruptly, his son mounted his horse and rode toward the pasture.

  "Jenny, help Miz Abby while I catch up with Luke and find out what the bee up his butt is. We'll be in for breakfast soon."

  Brant walked to his corralled horse and mounted. Flicking the reins, he galloped after Luke. His son's smaller horse was no match for Brant's big sorrel. When he came alongside him, he shouted for his son to pull up. After a moment's hesitation, the boy obeyed and jumped off his horse, stomping in the direction of an outcropping of boulders. Brant dismounted and followed, holding the reins of their horses.

  "Are you gonna tell me what's eatin' your butt, Luke?"

  "I don't want a new ma!"

  Brant did his best to hold his temper. "I can appreciate that 'cause you're older than Ty and Jenny. But they need a ma. I never wanted any woman but your ma, and I don't want to marry now, but sometimes, for the sake of others, you gotta do things you don't want to. I can't work a ranch and raise Ty and Jenny on my own, son."

  Luke stopped and hung his head. "I want her to leave. We've been gettin' along okay," he said with tears in his voice.

  "No, son, we haven't. She may not be the one I marry, but I will marry again. I'm giving her a chance. Let's just see how things go over the next few days. Okay?"

  Luke shrugged and Brant reached to cup his shoulder, but he jerked away and grabbed the reins of his horse, mounting and riding away.

  Brant sighed. How could he make Luke understand?

  Chapter 6: Miz Pitts

  Abigail exited her bedroom after washing up and changing her clothing. She hurried to help Jenny prepare breakfast. Together they mixed biscuit dough, washed and then fried salted bacon, and whipped eggs. When everything was almost ready, Abigail heard Ty calling from behind his door. "Would you like me to get him, Jenny?"

  "Sure thing, Miz Abby."

  Brant and Luke entered the cabin and walked to the sink to pump water and wash up.

  Abigail returned to the table carrying Ty, his smile warming her heart. Lifting him into his high chair, she hastened to the bucket of milk that had been brought in while she'd changed clothes. Ladling a tiny scoop into his tin and handing it to him, her heart expanded when he said, "Tank tu." Grasping the tin with his chubby fingers, he drank and made a milk mustache. She wiped the dribbles from his chin and he gave her another one of his adorable grins. "More, pwease," he said.

  While Abigail ladled more milk, Brant sat on the bench and Luke plopped silently across from him, reading the novel he'd retrieved from the mantle. Within minutes, Jenny had scooped eggs out of the skillet and into a big bowl that she topped with bacon. Abigail set a plate of sliced tomatoes alongside the eggs.

  Brant served up Ty's plate and blew on his eggs to cool them. The baby exclaimed, "Hot!"

  Handing him a biscuit, Brant smiled. "Eat this until they cool down." Glancing at Luke, his smile was replaced by a stern look that sent the boy back to the fireplace to return his book to the mantle.

  While they ate, Jenny rehashed the episode in the chicken coop and everyone but Luke laughed. Peeking from beneath her lashes, Abigail surveyed the homey scene and joy bubbled inside her.

  A bookshelf against the back wall caught her attention and Brant noticed. "Please feel free to read any of the books that catch your fancy. Being a teacher, you've probably read most of them, though."

  "Thank you." Abigail glanced at Luke and then back at Brant. "I also love to read. I brought some books with me; perhaps they'll complement your library."

  After breakfast, Brant bid Abigail and Jenny goodbye again and made sure Jenny knew the area where he and Luke would be working. While Abigail helped clean the dishes, she asked the question that had been on her mind since arriving. "Do you have a bathtub?"

  "Oh, yes, ma'am. My Pa bought a fancy one for Ma one Christmas. It's in Pa's room and he makes us pull it out once a week for baths."

  "Only once a week?" Abigail choked.

  "Course. Why would we want more'n that? Me and Ty wash up everyday at the sink and Pa and Luke splash themselves clean at the well or creek."

  "When is your next scheduled bath?"

  Jenny looked at Abigail like she didn't understand the question.

  "Is there a certain day of the week you bathe?"

  "Yes ma'am. Saturdays."

  "Hmm. I wonder if your Pa would mind if I bathed tonight?"

  "I don't see why not. My Ma used to bathe a lot and Pa always said he loved scrubbing her back. I used to hear em laughing in the bedroom and…." Jenny paused. "Hey, you okay Miz Abby; you sure look red in the face."

  For the remainder of the morning, Jenny kept up a running conversation while she worked. The responsibilities the child was shouldering staggered Abigail. She asked, "Jenny do you also wash clothes?"

  "Oh, no, ma'am. Pa takes our clothes to Miz Mayberry the washer lady. He'd never let my ma wash clothes either. Said he wasn't about to let her pretty hands get rough. You got pretty hands, too, Miz Abby. Pa won't let you wash clothes, even if you've a mind to. Beside that, Miz Mayberry's a widow and washing clothes is the way she makes money. Pa says it's our duty to help her."

  After their discussion about washing, Jenny led Abigail to a large garden behind the cabin and placed Ty on a blanket with some wooden toys. Together they picked tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and other vegetables. After filling a couple of baskets, they delivered the food into the house and started washing it. A sound outside distracted them.

  Jenny looked out the window. "Oh, criminy. It's Lola Pitts and her Ma and Pa. I just know they're here so's Lola can check you out. She's been wantin' my Pa to court her since forever. She went to school wit
h Ma and Pa and she's right pretty, but Pa said she's just not right for him. I'm glad 'cause she's kinda uppity and mean to us when Pa's not around."

  Abigail had no idea how to respond to Jenny's confidences. She leaned over and picked Ty up when Jenny opened the front door to their visitors' knock. Kissing his soft hair, she breathed his baby scent. A high pitched female voice said, "Well, hello, Jenny. Don't you look pretty. We came by to bring some welcoming blackberry preserves to your guest. May we come in?"

  "Course, Miz Pitts. Can I get you some tea or coffee?" She stepped aside to allow the Pitts family to enter.

  Abigail almost gasped at the beauty of the woman entering the room. If she were a debutante, every eligible man in Philadelphia would be courting her. Her youthful appearance suddenly made Abigail wonder just how old Brant was. He'd never said in his letters, but she'd assumed he was close to her own age because of the ages of his children.

  Lola Pitts was followed by portly parents. Glancing from Lola to her parents, Abigail couldn't imagine how they'd conceived such a beautiful daughter.

  Abigail extended her hand in greeting. "Hello, I'm Abigail Vaughn. It's a pleasure meeting you Mr. and Mrs. Pitts, Miss Pitts."

  "Oh goodness, you must call me Lola." As the beauty spoke, she untied the bow of her bonnet and slid it off to reveal golden hair of a shade Abigail had never seen. The woman's pale blue eyes traveled up and down Abigail in a manner that made her straighten her shoulders. Obviously, Lola Pitts found her lacking.

  Mrs. Pitts said, "So you're the mail order bride. News is all over town that you arrived yesterday. Can't fathom why Brant would want to marry someone he's never met, but men do strange things." She looked at her husband, "Isn't that right, dear?"

  "Yes, that's right." Mr. Pitts looked uncomfortable.

  Lola said, "We'll have some of that tea you offered, Jenny."

  "Yes, ma'am. I made cookies yesterday, would you like one?"

  "I don't think so. The last batch almost broke my tooth."