Phebe took the chair Henry pulled out for her. She had to concentrate to keep from slumping over and laying her head on the table. It had been a long day, and she was bone tired. She smiled when Henry offered the only other available chair to Martha, who had followed Phebe into the small cabin. The former miner chuckled before lowering herself to the floor. Crossing her legs in front of her, she leaned back against a thick log that ran half the length of one wall.

Henry stood by the empty chair and glanced over at Phebe. In her head she could almost hear him asking, “What do I do now?” She doubted if he’d ever seen a grown woman take a seat on the floor. She smiled and nodded at the chair, watching as he eased gently into it, reminding her of the way he’d carefully sat in the chair at Kate’s Tea Shop. Had that really only been three days ago?

The only door to the outside opened, and Jake stepped through with Reb right on his heels. The stocky hand looked around the room before removing his hat and placing it on a peg in the wall.

“This is real nice.” Jake nodded as his gaze went to Phebe. “It’s a good place for you to stay until we can decide what all needs doin’.”

“It is a good place,” Phebe agreed softly. “And I’m grateful to have it.”

Henry placed the book he’d been carrying on the small table that sat in the center of the room before adjusting his glasses on his nose. He smiled at his bride. “Thank you for dinner.”

“Don’t thank me.” Phebe inclined her head toward the woman sitting on the floor next to the hearth. “Martha shot the deer so we could add meat to the stew tonight.”

When Henry glanced her way, Martha shrugged. “Hardworkin’ men need somethin’ that will stick to their ribs, otherwise they ain’t no use to anyone.”

“How’d you catch up with that deer anyhow?” Reb asked. He scratched his chin through the scraggly beard sprouting haphazardly along his chin as he stared at Martha. “They don’t take to anything gettin’ too close to ’em.”

As the talk drifted into the different ways to hunt down a deer, Phebe let her gaze drift around the cabin. One wall was taken up by a good-sized fireplace. There were two doors opposite the one used to come into the cabin, each leading into a smaller room that Phebe imagined had been used as bedchambers. When she’d peeked into them earlier in the day, all she’d seen in the larger of the two rooms was a very narrow bed frame, built low to the ground, and an overturned crate. Except for the small rectangular table and two mismatched chairs in the room where they’d all gathered, there wasn’t another stick of furniture in the place.

And Phebe could already feel the chill of the mountain air. She drew her woolen shawl closer around her shoulders.

“I looked over the spot you had drawn out for my laboratory. It’s a fine, very flat area and should do nicely, but are you sure I should be that far away from you and the children?”

Phebe drew in a quick breath before turning a sunny smile on her husband. “I think it’s perfect, Henry. It will have enough sun for the garden you want to put in, and it’s closer to the lake.” And a ready source of water if anything catches fire, Phebe added silently.

“Yes, well then, I’ll mark it off and put it on the list for the men.”

She frowned. “List?”

Henry had already removed a piece of paper and charcoal pencil from his coat pocket and was busy scribbling on it. “The order we’ll need to have everything built.”

“Order?” Phebe shot a quick glance at Martha, who only shook her head in response. “What order did you have in mind?”

Henry adjusted his glasses and leaned a little closer to the paper in front of him. “I think the men should start by working on sleeping quarters for the children in the mornings, and then switch to doing whatever is necessary to the old mill in the afternoon after the lessons are done.” He lifted his head and looked at his wife. “You’ll need to tell them what you want done to turn it into a proper school, although the loft would make an excellent book repository.”

“A library?” Phebe’s mouth dropped open. “You want to build a library?”

Her husband’s eyes reflected his confusion. “Of course. I did bring quite a few books with me. I’d need to keep a few in my laboratory, but the rest would be suitable for the students.”

“You’d share your books with my students?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Henry looked genuinely puzzled. “Books are meant for everyone. That’s what makes them so powerful, don’t you agree?”

The fatigue which had been dragging at Phebe ever since she’d sat down suddenly lightened. She knew how much her husband treasured his books and was overwhelmed that he’d allow all the students to have complete access to them. It was incredibly generous, and something Madam Wigg would have wholeheartedly approved of. And it made Phebe’s heart melt just a little.

Fussing with her skirt to cover the sudden heat in her cheeks, Phebe remembered the order of work Henry had set forth. “You want the men to put up sleeping quarters for the children before they build your laboratory?”

“I know they can sleep in the wagons, but we’d all rest easier if they had something more solid around them. And winter will be here before we know it.” Henry looked around the cabin. “I suppose we could add on two large sections to this house and plan a completely different home for ourselves.” He crossed his arms over his chest and seemed to consider the idea. “It would speed things along and give them a place to sleep all that much sooner.”

“You want the school and a proper place for the children to be built before your laboratory?” Phebe repeated softly.

“That would be the most logical course to take,” Henry said, his gaze once again returning to his list.

Phebe looked over at Jake and Reb, who were both grinning at her, and then at Martha, who mouthed, “he’s a good man.” Given Henry’s life of wealth, Phebe had assumed he’d want his own home and laboratory built first. She was stunned he wanted to put children he had no ties to before his own comfort.

“How much of that grass do you want us to cut, boss?” Jake’s deep voice bounced around the room.

Henry rose from his chair and began to pace in front of the fireplace. “We’ll need enough to cover the floor space of the old mill to start.”

“You want to lay grass on the floor of our classroom?” Phebe asked. She wasn’t at all sure that was a good idea. The floors were worn enough that a little mud tracked in here and there wouldn’t make much difference. Especially since she’d assigned sweeping the classrooms as one of the chores for the children to do each day.

“No, not on the floors,” Henry smiled. His face took on a faraway look, as if he were studying something that only he could see. “We’re going to use the milled lumber we brought to lay a flat ceiling underneath the roof. Then we’ll mix the dried grass in with the raw cotton and spread it out on the top of the ceiling.”

Phebe struggled to envision what he was describing, but couldn’t discern why Henry would want to do such a thing. “Is there a reason to do this?”

“Heat rises.” When she gave him a confused look, Henry grinned. “It’s to keep the space below warmer in the winter.”

Phebe narrowed her eyes as she thought that over. She laughed when Henry’s remark suddenly made sense. “Because heat rises.” She beamed at him. “You want to trap the heat from the fireplace in the room.”

“Yes,” Henry said. “The grass-and-cotton mixture will make a much more effective barrier than just logs with mud plaster between them.”

Martha suddenly chuckled as she unfolded her legs and got to her feet. “Heat rises. Well, don’t that beat all.” She shook her head. “Maybe I shoulda laid some of that cotton-and-grass mix on top of my tent in the winter. It could get colder than the devil’s stare on nights up higher in the mountains.”

Jake gave a solemn nod. “It’s one of Henry’s conveniences that Adam is always talkin’ about.”

“Indeed, it is a convenience,” Phebe laughed.

Martha placed her hands on the small of her back and stretched her body upward before picking up her gun. “Well, I’d best be gittin’ back to that wagon. Gotta make sure those children are behavin’ and not wanderin’ off somewheres.”

Henry clasped his hands behind his back and smiled at her. “You’re welcome to stay in the second room. One of the men can bunk down near the wagon where the children are and keep an eye on them. Or perhaps the children could sleep in this room, near the fire.”

Phebe’s nerves jangled a bit when Henry mentioned the sleeping arrangements in the cabin. She thought of the very small, narrow bed frame with the rope strung across it. She’d hoped Henry had another plan in mind for the two of them.

Martha squinted at the tall man smiling at her and studied him in silence for a moment. “How long have you and Miz Phebe been married?”

Henry blinked at the question. “A few days.”

“Huh,” Martha grunted as she turned toward the door. “Don’t think the children are needin’ that kind of teachin’. They’re a mite young to be listenin’ to the two of you.”

She opened the door and melted into the night as Phebe’s face went up in flames. She peeked over at Henry and saw he was bright red as well.

Jake cleared his throat while Reb shuffled his feet back and forth.

“We’d best be goin’ too.” Jake walked over to the door and lifted his hat off the peg. “We’ll get to cutttin’ that grass as soon as the mornin’ sun burns off the dew.”

“Thank you, Jake.” Henry’s voice sounded strained despite his smile. “I’ll be out there shortly after the sun is up.”

In less than a minute, Phebe was alone with her husband, with Martha’s words still echoing in her head. Not sure what to do next, she retreated into her usual calm silence.

Henry slowly looked away from the door that Reb had shut behind him. When his gaze met Phebe’s, they were both silent as they stared at each other. Finally shaking his head as if he were clearing it, Henry took in a deep breath.

“I’m sure you’re tired. It’s been a long day.”

“I am tired,” Phebe agreed quietly.

When he continued to simply stare at her, she clasped her hands in front of her and tilted her head to the side. “Is something wrong?”

Henry’s expression remained serious as he crossed the room. Stopping a bare foot away, he wrapped his hands around her upper arms and lifted her from the chair as he stared into her upturned face. “You’re beautiful.” Lowering his head, his lips brushed lightly across her cheek.

As soon as Phebe made a small sound in her throat, his mouth trailed down to hers and settled there, pressing firmly against her lips. When Phebe’s lips parted, Henry let out a slight groan and his tongue slipped into her mouth to taste and explore while Phebe clung helplessly to his shoulders, trying to absorb the sudden onslaught of sensations whirling through her body.

She tried to move closer to him, but Henry suddenly pulled away, stepping back to hold her at arm’s length. For a long moment neither of them broke the charged silence. Finally, Henry took another step away from Phebe and dropped his hands back to his sides.

“Yes, well.” He rocked on his heels. “I had your trunk put into your room and spread several blankets out on the bed. I hope you’ll find it comfortable enough to sleep on.”

Phebe looked over at the small bedchamber. Her room? Oh no, this couldn’t be happening again! Especially not after the way he’d kissed her. But when Henry turned toward the door, Phebe realized it was a repetition of their wedding night, and Henry intended to sleep somewhere else. Her hopes rose a little when he hesitated, then plunged again at his next words.

“I’ll be by for you in the morning, so we can have breakfast together.”

With a last duck of his head, he left Phebe in the center of the cabin, staring after him.