As soon as they got back to their new home, Becky went in, looking carefully through the kitchen to see if there was anything else they needed. She had fabric for all of her sewing projects, including curtains, in the back of the wagon. Amos had said he would bring them in after unhitching the horses.

Thankfully the food arrived a few minutes after they did, and she busied herself putting things away and making plans for supper that evening. “Are you hungry for anything in particular?” she asked as Amos came in with a crate full of food.

He shook his head. “Surprise me.” He wasn’t picky, and he had a feeling anything she made would be better than anything he could dream up. “I’m going to get started on the back porch. I’d meant to work on that earlier today, but then we went back into town. I may not have time to get it done before my mother arrives.”

“I’m starting to get a little nervous about your mother arriving, just so you know.” She worked on unpacking the crate, thinking about what she wanted to fix. She settled on a thick beef soup with noodles. Mrs. Franklin had taught her to make noodles, and she really enjoyed the process. It gave her mind time to wander.

“Don’t worry about her. She’s going to love you because you’re going to give her a grandbaby.” He walked out of the kitchen and toward the back of the house. The porch was started but not finished, and he really did want it as perfect as he could get it, so they could sit outside and watch the sunset—before and after his mother was there.

Becky was thankful the house was new, and there was little cleaning up that needed to be done. It was just a matter of keeping up with how fresh it already looked. There were walls that needed to be painted, but she’d seen paint buckets sitting around. That was something she could do while he worked if he wanted her to.

On the porch, Amos gave himself over to the methodical push and pull of the saw as he cut the boards for the railing. He glanced up and wasn’t surprised to see the stranger watching him. He didn’t say anything for a minute, preferring to finish his task first. Over the time the man had been coming to him, he’d learned that making him wait didn’t perturb him at all.

“How can I help you today?” Amos finally asked.

“Don’t you mean to ask how I’ll help you?” The stranger grinned at him, leaning against the side of the house, which had yet to be painted. Amos could already picture it painted white with the porch green. It would be beautiful.

Amos just looked at him. “I reckon you’re going to eventually tell me something. If not, I’m just going to keep working.”

“Your bride needs to fall in love with you.”

Amos raised an eyebrow. “Unless you’re going to give me some sort of magic love potion to work with, I’m not sure how I’m going to make that happen.”

“Well, you need to court her, of course. It’s important she love you before the baby is born.”

“Why?” Amos stared at the stranger, trying to understand why it mattered exactly when his wife fell in love with him. As long as she did, Amos would be happy.

The stranger laughed. “Do you really expect me to answer that? Don’t you know me better than that by now?”

Amos sighed. “So I need to get her to fall in love with me before when? When will the baby be born?”

“No one can ever tell those things, can they? You’re just going to have to work fast.” With that, the man faded from view.

Amos removed his cowboy hat and hit his leg with it in frustration. He’d learned quickly to listen to every word the man said because everything he told him was the gospel truth. Whether he liked it or not, the man knew a great deal more than he did, so he needed to listen and obey.

How on earth was he supposed to court his very pregnant wife? Maybe asking her how soon she would be having the baby would be a good first step. That’s what he’d do. He’d ask and hopefully get a quick answer. He looked out over the fields and saw a few early spring flowers popping out of the ground. There weren’t a lot in early April, but there were enough that he could pick a bouquet for supper.

He sighed and got back to work, promising himself to pick those flowers. Why she needed to be in love with him before the baby came would be good information to have, and it might help him figure out what he was going to do, but he knew he’d get no more information on the topic from the stranger.

Just before going into the house for supper, he walked out and picked a bouquet of wildflowers, getting as many different colors as he could. He carried the offering into the kitchen, holding it behind his back.

“How’s my favorite wife?” he asked.

Becky turned around from the pot she was stirring on the stove. “Does this mean you have other wives hidden around that you haven’t told me about yet?” Her grin told him she was amused by his words.

“Well, no, but that means less competition for you!” He winked at her, enjoying her blush.

She laughed. “Supper’s almost ready.”

He looked and saw the table was already set. “I have something to add to the table, if you’d like.” He pulled the flowers from behind his back and held them out to her. “These are for you.”

Becky’s hand went to her chest in surprise. “Thank you, Amos!” The truth was no one had ever brought her flowers before. It wasn’t something Cliff had ever done. “They’re beautiful!” She took them and frowned. “If there was a vase in this house, where would it be?”

He shook his head. “I never thought of that. There isn’t a vase here.”

“No matter.” Becky hurried to a cabinet and pulled out a tall glass, putting the flowers into water in the glass. “I love that you have a pump right in the kitchen. We didn’t have that when I was growing up, and we were always having to go outside to pump water.”

“I tried to think of everything a wife would want when I designed this place.”

She looked at him with surprise. “You designed the house as well as building it?” She carried her glass to the table and set it in the middle, arranging the flowers fussily.

“I did. I’ve always wanted several children, so I designed it with that in mind. I figure I’ll eventually build a little house for my mother in the backyard because once grandkids come along, we’ll never get her to go back to New York.” He walked to the sink and washed his hands, inhaling the scent of the meal she was cooking. “Supper smells good. I can’t wait to try your cooking.”

She smiled at that. “I hope it tastes as good as it smells. This is one of my favorite meals, but I’m not sure how you’ll like it.” Filling two bowls, she carried them to the table. She’d made one of her favorite things, but it also happened to be one without a great deal of meat, so it was an inexpensive meal to make. She hoped he would appreciate her thriftiness.

Once they were seated, he took her hand in his and said a brief prayer over the meal. “I’m glad you thought to get bread at the store. There’s no way you could have had some ready for supper.” He buttered a piece, happy with how soft it was.

“No, I couldn’t have. But I’ll make some fresh tomorrow.” She already looked forward to taking care of him and pampering him and making all of his favorite things for him. “What’s your favorite food?”

He shrugged. “Anything with beef. I’m a meat eater.” He took a big spoonful of the beef, gravy, and noodles. “This is delicious!”

“Thank you! Mrs. Franklin taught me to make noodles while we were working together, and it just seemed like it would go nicely with beef this way.” She was glad her experiment had turned out well.

“I really like it.” He put some of the carrots she had in a bowl on the table onto a small plate.

“So you’re from New York? How did you end up in Creede?”

He swallowed the bite of food in his mouth before answering. “I was never fond of living in New York. My mother liked the society life there, but it wasn’t for me. I decided when I was eighteen that I was going to move to Colorado and dig for gold, which I did. I hit a vein, and mined it completely before anyone else found out about it. Then I went into town and cashed it in. I had enough there that I never had to work again, but I like to work. I’ve always been fascinated by construction, so I started my own business. I have six men who work for me, and I jump in and get my hands dirty right along with them.”

“That explains a lot.” It now made sense how he’d not worried about money as they’d purchased things that day. “Do you think you’ll want Creede to be your forever home?”

“I do. I wouldn’t have built this house if I didn’t. This place is just the perfect home for me. I hope you’ll always be happy here because I don’t plan on leaving. I’d be willing to travel a little if you wanted, but other than that, I’ll stay here.”

Becky was a little surprised at the way he spoke as if they’d be together forever. That wasn’t the way he’d talked Friday night. “I’ve never even thought of travel. I’ve never been out of Colorado. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever been more than twenty miles from where I was born.”

“Really? You need to go on the ocean at least once. It’s so beautiful! You need to see the beaches of California, and the deserts of Arizona. We live in a beautiful country, and by not traveling, you’re missing out on so much.”

She smiled at that. “I haven’t really had much opportunity for travel or anything else. I’m only eighteen.”

“Really?” He shook his head. “You make me feel old. I’m only twenty-five, but I’ve done so much more than you have.”

“So you say your mother enjoyed New York society. Does that mean you were raised with wealth?”

Amos nodded. “My father was a lawyer there, and he made more money than a man should. All of my sisters had huge parties when they came out, and Mother was the reigning queen of society. Now all my sisters are married off and happy, so she’s setting her sights on me.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“It’s a little of both. Now that we’re married, it wouldn’t be nearly as intimidating for her to come here and try to parade women in front of me. I really do think we should be prepared for her to bring at least one woman she wants me to marry. I know it will be uncomfortable, but once they see that I’m happily married, they should back off.”

Becky sighed. Happily married sounded so far off. She barely knew the man. “Well, we’re going to have to get to know each other as quickly as we possibly can if we want to appear happily married by the end of the week.” She shook her head. “I’m not quite sure how we’re going to manage, but I will try my very best.”

“That’s all I can ask.” As soon as she’d finished eating and stood up to clear the table, he caught her hand in his and pulled her down into his lap. “Being comfortable around each other is something they’ll be looking for.” He stroked a tendril of hair that had escaped her bun from her face. “You’re a very beautiful woman, Mrs. Bowen.”

She blushed at his words. “I don’t know how you can think that with as huge as I am.”

He shook his head. “Babies are gifts from God. We’re going to enjoy every minute of that baby together.” He looked into her eyes for a moment. “Maybe you should tell me a little more about the baby’s father. How long did you know him?”

“I think we decided we were going to marry when we were nine. I’ve known him my whole life. We both grew up in this area, and we ran into each other from time to time.” She shrugged. “We would see each other at church. When we started courting, neither of our families were thrilled, but they didn’t try to stop us.”

“He was good to you?” That’s what worried him the most. He was frightened that she had been mistreated before they’d met. He didn’t want that to be the case.

She nodded. “He was. He wasn’t a man with courtly manners. He never brought me flowers. But he cared about me, and he always put my needs first.”

“Good.” He wanted to ask more, but he decided it wasn’t his business. He’d accepted the fact that she was coming to him pregnant with another man’s child, and he needed to leave it at that.

“What about you? Have there been no loves in your life?”

He shrugged. “I went to events with girls in New York, but after leaving there, I’ve concentrated on my career. I’ve been so busy making money that women just didn’t seem to matter to me.”

“I see.” She started to stand up, but he kept hold of her waist, keeping her there on his lap.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“I want to get the dishes washed before the food dries on.” She hated having to go through extra work just because she was procrastinating.

“I want to keep you here for a little longer. We need to get more comfortable with each other.” He put one hand on her cheek, stroking it softly. “May I kiss you?”

She nodded slowly. The truth was she enjoyed his kisses so much more than she ever had Cliff’s that she felt guilty for it.

He pressed his lips to hers, his hand staying at her waist.

She felt her heartbeat speed up, and there was a tingling in her stomach she’d never experienced before. What was he doing to her to make her feel this way?

“You’re starting to get under my skin, Becky.” He rested his forehead against hers. “Is Becky your full name?”

She shook her head. “No, it’s Rebekah.”

“I like that.” He took a deep breath, trying to get his body under control. “You’d better do the dishes. When you’re finished, join me in the parlor, though. We’ll talk some more.”

“All right.” She got off his lap, surprised to find her knees were a little wobbly. She walked to the sink and started the dishes, waiting until his footsteps took him out of the room before she leaned against the counter and let out a loud breath. The man was doing something to her, and she still couldn’t figure out how he made it happen.

In the other room, Amos sat down on the sofa, staring off into space for a moment. If he only had to be in love with Becky before the baby came, that would be easy. But her being in love with him? That might be a little harder.

When she joined him a short while later, he patted the seat right beside him on the sofa, and she sat there. His arm came around her, and he held her against him, her head on his shoulder. “I think I’m going to build a porch swing, so we can sit outside and rock back and forth as we watch the stars.”

She smiled. “I’d like that. I picture us doing that with me holding a baby, and other children playing around us on the porch.”

“Do you see us having children together?” he asked. It was the first time she’d indicated she might be interested in something more permanent. He was pleased but also surprised.

She nodded. “I think I do. You’re a good man, Amos Bowen. I can see forever with you very easily.”

He smiled at that, just holding her close. “Let’s talk about dreams. . . .”

When it was time for bed, he let her use the water closet first. “I’ll be upstairs if you need me.”

Becky nodded, feeling strange going into her quiet room. She was spending her wedding night alone. As much as she already liked the man, she couldn’t bring herself to ask him to share her room that night, though. She wasn’t ready for anything more to happen between them, especially with her middle being so large. When they became intimate—and she realized it was when in her mind and not if—she wanted to be as slim as she used to be.

She fell asleep with a smile on her lips. She was married to a good man, and she thanked God for him.

Amos lay in bed for a long time, his hands folded behind his head. He wasn’t sure why he’d thought being married to a woman he couldn’t touch had been a good idea, but it had truly been his all along. He would spend his life never touching but always wanting.

No, the stranger was right. He needed to get her to love him before she had the baby. For his own peace of mind as much as anything else. He found her terribly attractive even in her very pregnant state. He could only imagine how he’d find her if she wasn’t carrying another man’s child.

He sighed. Hopefully soon he’d be able to tell her about the feelings he was developing for her. For now, he would court her to the best of his ability. Which meant little gifts that told her he was thinking of her. There was a jewelry store in town. Maybe he could find her a necklace or a bracelet there.

No. His eyes widened, and he grinned. He knew exactly what to get his pretty little wife that she would appreciate more than anything else. He was starting to get to know her, and he could see she was not like other women. She didn’t need silly little trinkets to make her happy. Well, maybe silly little trinkets would help, but first he had a better idea.

Every day he would bring her home a nice little gift. And hopefully every day she would fall just a little bit more in love with him. Because he needed her in his life for now and forever.

He thought of the stranger’s words about how he only had a short while to make her love him. He could do it. He knew he could.