Falling in Love With Her Husband (3 page)

Falling In Love With Her Husband

“I just want her picture. I don"t want to marry her.” At

sixteen, I wasn"t thinking that far off into the future.

“I"l get the picture and I won"t tell her why.”

As soon as I got the picture, I framed it so it would

stay in good condition. As the year passed, I often gazed

upon it and recalled the day she taught me Solitaire.

It was easy to admire her dark hair, fair complexion,

brown eyes, and hourglass figure. I couldn"t think of a single

thing that was wrong with her. Well, that wasn"t entirely

true. She did have one flaw. She didn"t love me.

***

My last attempt to get Ann"s interest came in October

when we were seventeen. She came down with a fever and

was unable to attend school, so I volunteered to take her

homework to her. This was my chance to talk to her without

Agnes being around.

Monday through Thursday, I visited with her in her

bedroom. Ginny stayed in her room while I discussed the

class lessons for the day and recorded her answers to the

questions on our homework. Even when she was sick in

bed, she was beautiful. Her disheveled hair and runny nose

did little to discourage me. It was nice to see her without her

jewelry, fancy dresses and hats on. We mostly made small

talk, and I thought she was beginning to enjoy my company.

I know the more I learned about her, the more I loved her.

She wasn"t sure what she wanted to do after we finished

school in May.

“I suppose it will be time to get serious about looking

for a husband because I have to,” she said thoughtfully. “I

hate to say it but sometimes being wealthy isn"t much fun.

You have to do what others expect you to do. For once, I

would like to do something that isn"t proper.” She glanced at

Ginny and smiled. “I often tell Ginny that one of these days,

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I"m going to let my hair down and go outside without a hat or

a parasol.”

I grinned. “I wouldn"t mind seeing that.”

“Oh, I know it isn"t a big thing as far as the rules go.”

“Who says you have to do something drastic?

Sometimes just doing something small can help when we

live under the expectations of our parents.”

“So you do understand.”

More than she realized. That was one of the

reasons I went along with some of Alex"s pranks. They

were harmless and funny. I didn"t want to mention him

though. I wanted to keep the atmosphere pleasant.

“What are you going to do, Todd? Are you going to

college or start working?”

I hesitated to answer her question. I was seriously

considering moving to Jamestown, North Dakota to be a

farmer. Alex"s aunt and uncle, who lived in Fargo, told me

many stories about farming and North Dakota whenever

they came for a visit. They also sent him pictures which he

showed me.

Finally, I answered, “I"m not sure yet.”

“Tell me. Do men have the same pressure to marry

that women do?”

I thought over her question. “No. At least, I don"t.

We do feel pressured to find a suitable job.”

“So we have our own pressures to deal with. How

do you cope?”

“By dreaming of what I want to do.”

“Real y? What is that?”

Did I dare tell her? I wanted to, especially since I

was hoping to ask her to marry me and go with me when we

finished school. But with Ginny there, I decided not to

mention it. I didn"t know how much servants talked amongst

themselves and did not wish my parents to discover my

possible plan. The only person I trusted with the information

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was Alex who faithfully kept my secret and helped me find

out more about farming and North Dakota.

“It"s alright. You don"t have to tell me,” she said. “I

can understand the need for a secret.”

Again, she amazed me.

“I suppose we should discuss my homework,” she

stated before she sneezed into her handkerchief.

“God bless you,” I whispered. Even when she

sneezed, she was pretty.

“Thanks.”

We turned to the homework.

When Friday came, I wore my best suit. It was a

medium gray color with a dark blue tie. I even paid attention

to how I combed my hair. This would be the day I would ask

her if I could court her. Since we had some pleasant

conversations over the week, I was hopeful that she might

start to see me in a more romantic light. I didn"t want her to

think of me as just Agnes" older brother.

When I arrived at her house with her books, my heart

pounded loudly in my chest. I rang the doorbell and waited

for her servant to answer. I followed George into the parlor

and smiled at the sight of her. She wore a gorgeous dark

green dress and had her hair neatly pulled back with a dark

green bow. I didn"t dare hope she dressed nicely for me.

Ginny took my hat and coat.

“You look like you"re feeling well,” I greeted as I set

her books on the table.

“I do. Thank you.” Ann motioned to the chair. “Wil

you sit down?”

I sat in the chair while she sat on the sofa. Of

course, I wished that I was sitting next to her but knew it

wouldn"t be proper until I was courting her, and even then, I

wouldn"t sit too close.

“My fever is gone, though I stil have a stuffy nose,”

she reported. “I do appreciate your keeping me current on

my school work.”

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Falling In Love With Her Husband

“It was either come here or work at my father"s

bank.” That wasn"t real y the reason I was doing it, but I

didn"t feel ready to say the truth yet.

“Are you ready to start that so soon?”

I sighed as I thought about working there.

“Apparently.”

“I take it that it doesn"t please you. You should be

able to have the job of your choosing after you graduate, so

your time at the bank wil be temporary.”

“We"l see.” The truth was, if she showed any interest

in me, I would seriously consider staying in Virginia and

working at my father"s bank, but I didn"t want her to feel

responsible for such a decision. After a few moments of

awkward silence, I said, “We got a new student today.”

“Real y? Who?”

“Kent Ashton. He just arrived two days ago from

New York.”

Her eyes lit up. “New York? How impressive.”

I frowned. A lot of the young ladies in class thought

Kent was exciting. Did I really have a chance next to

someone who was obviously more charming and

sophisticated than I was? “Yes. Many girls seem to be

taken with him. Alex had to welcome him the only way Alex

could.” It wasn"t my intention to bring Alex up but I hoped to

get off the topic of Kent.

“Oh no!”

“You know, Alex may be a prankster but he"s

harmless. He"s not all bad.”

She rolled her eyes. “Alex is so childish. When are

you going to get tired of his foolishness? I hope Kent

doesn"t assume everyone is as il -mannered as Alex.”

I stiffened. “I admit that Alex does joke a little too

much, but he is a good friend.”

I thanked the servant who brought me a cup of hot

cocoa.

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“Personally, I think he"s a bad influence. If I hadn"t

dumped sand all over him when we were ten, he never

would have left me alone. I hope Kent will teach him a

lesson.”

I grinned as I recalled the day Alex and I were so

bored in class that we threw pebbles in her hair until she got

fed up and poured a jar of sand all over us. “I must have

taken two baths that night to make sure all of that sand was

off of me.”

She chuckled at the memory, her mood brightening.

“It was kind of funny.”

“Everyone in class learned not to mess with you after

that. Oh, Agnes wanted me to give you her letter. She

wanted to come but I felt it was best that she wait until

you"re healthy. I don"t want her to risk getting sick.”

“Tell her I miss her,” she replied as she took the

letter. My heart rate increased as our fingers lightly

touched. “So, what homework do I need to do?”

I wanted to say something more but decided to go

over her homework.

After an hour, I stood up to leave. “I will see you on

Monday. I"m glad you"re feeling better.”

“Thank you again for bringing me my homework so I

don"t get behind in school.”

I shrugged. “It wasn"t a bother.”

Ginny brought me my hat and coat. I slipped them

on and hesitated. Would it be appropriate to ask her if I

could court her?

“Is there anything else?” she wondered.

Suddenly, I realized I couldn"t do it. “No. I better

go.”

And so I left with a lot I wanted to say but couldn"t.

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Ann’s Point of View

On Monday, I entered the classroom. I quickly

waved to Debbie and Rachel as I headed straight for my

desk.

“Ann, may I say something?” Todd asked as I

passed him.

I stopped, not because I wanted to but because it

would be rude if I didn"t. I clutched my books to my chest

and waited. He wouldn"t say anything in front of the entire

class. Would he? I had the sinking sensation that he

wanted to court me and hoped to make sure the

conversation regarding it never came up.

He stood up. He smoothed his hair and adjusted his

tie. “I"m glad to see you made it.”

I shrugged. “It was either come here or stay bored at

home, staring at the walls.” It was a dumb joke but it was all

I could think of. I glanced at my seat which was a couple of

rows from him.

“Did I upset you Friday when I talked about Alex? I

know he bothers you.”

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“You"re his friend. I expect you to mention him.” I

sighed. “I suppose he shouldn"t irk me so. I mean, it"s not

like he does anything to me and no one else seems to mind

his pranks. It probably doesn"t help that I keep calling him

Creepy Alex either.”

He chuckled. “He calls you Scary Annie.”

I frowned. “I"m not scary.”

“Wel , you did hit him with a broom.”

I giggled. “That was funny, wasn"t it?”

“Good for you,” someone interrupted. “I think Creepy

Alex is an apt term. However, I can"t imagine you being

scary, even if you did come after me with a broom.”

I paused and turned around so I could see the

person who spoke. Dark brown hair, clear green eyes, and

a great smile. This had to be Kent. And he was handsome!

I imagined someone from New York would be fascinating

but he put all of my fantasies to shame. I thought he was

rude to listen to what Todd and I said, but since he set his

books on the desk in front of Todd, I realized he couldn"t

help but overhear if that"s where he had to sit.

“I"m Kent Ashton.” He kissed my hand.

I stared at him, bewildered that he could be so bold.

That must be how New Yorkers were. Bold and charming. I

cleared my throat. “Todd told me you came here last week.”

“Yes. My family moved from New York.”

“I know. He told me that too.”

“We can always talk later when your family comes

over to see mine,” Todd said.

Remembering Todd, I looked at him. “What?”

His smile faltered. “Never mind. I just wanted to

apologize for mentioning Alex on Friday.”

“Oh. It"s alright. I wasn"t upset with you.”

He nodded and sat down.

Blushing, because Kent still had his beautiful green

eyes on me, I shyly said that it was nice to meet him and

walked to my desk. I had no idea what to say to him. He

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was much more sophisticated than me. To my surprise, he

followed me.

“May I hang your coat in the back of the room?”

My heart skipped a beat. “Uh…” None of the young

men had offered to do that before. But Kent was from New

York. Maybe young men did that kind of thing there.

“I promise I won"t run off with it,” he teased.

I laughed. “I know.”

Feeling somewhat awkward and aware that Debbie

and Rachel watched me with amused expressions, I took