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  He turned and walked back toward the house. He hoped Emily had fried up the chicken, but whatever she’d done, he was certain it would be tasty. She didn’t cook Norwegian, but so far, he’d liked everything she’d made.

  He went into the house and washed his hands, inhaling the scent of the food she’d cooked. “That smells wonderful.”

  Emily smiled at him. “It’s all ready. We were just waiting on you.” She was nervous about serving her new family their first real dinner with her. Sure, she’d made him breakfast, but any idiot could make eggs and bacon. Beans were easy as well. Hopefully they’d enjoy the chicken and dumplings.

  He looked around. She had made bread and it looked like there was a cake on the work table. His stomach growled, as he took his seat at the table. She served him a bowl of pieces of chicken and something else. There were sliced up carrots as well. He wasn’t sure what it was. He looked at it for a moment, and then bowed his head to pray for his family.

  “So what’s this?” he asked, poking at it with his spoon.

  “Chicken and dumplings. I can’t believe you’ve never had it.” Emily looked nervous that no one had ever eaten the food she’d fixed. It was a common meal in the East.

  “So those white things are dumplings?” he asked.

  “The girls said they’d had dumplings before. What do you think dumplings look like?” Emily bit her lip. No one had eaten a single bite of food yet.

  “Well, usually they’re darker.” He noticed then the girls weren’t eating and were waiting for him. He took a bite and was surprised at how good it was. “This is delicious.” After another quick bite, he took a sip of his water. “You can make this every night!”

  The girls each took bites and smiled. They obviously liked it, too. Emily breathed a sigh of relief and started eating her own food. “I can learn to make dumplings the way you’re used to eating them if you’d like.”

  Benjamin shook his head. “Maybe, but I’ll be happy to eat these any time you want to fix them for us.” He reached out for a dinner roll and buttered it. After taking a bite he set it down. “Your bread is different from what we’re used to as well, but it’s very good. I guess food that’s not Norwegian is good too.”

  Benjamin polished off three bowls and each of the girls had two. Emily had been planning to serve leftovers for lunch the following day, but she could see there wouldn’t be enough. She couldn’t complain, though, because they’d obviously enjoyed the meal.

  Benjamin leaned back and patted his full stomach. “If you cook like that every day, I won’t be able to fit through the door soon.”

  Emily smiled. “There’s cake, too.”

  His eyes flitted to the work table where he’d noticed the cake earlier. “I’ll hate myself later, but I’ll take a piece of cake.”

  “Girls?” She looked to Abbie and Georgie to see if they were interested in a piece of the cake they’d helped her make.

  Both girls nodded to indicate they wanted cake as well. She was surprised at how little the family talked while they ate. They seemed to take their food a lot more seriously than she was used to. She cut them each a slice of cake and returned to the table. She’d made a buttercream frosting for it she’d learned to make for the family she’d worked for.

  As before, both girls waited for Benjamin to try it, and at his smile, they ate theirs as well. Emily took small bites of her cake while watching the others. Obviously she’d done well with the meal.

  Finally, Benjamin pushed back from the table. “I know you said you’d worked as a cook, but when you said you didn’t even know what Norwegian foods were, I doubted we’d be happy. I was wrong. This meal was simply wonderful.”

  Emily blushed, pleased with the praise. “Thank you.” She turned to the girls. “Let’s clear the table together, and then you girls can wash the dishes for me.” She stood and began moving the dirty dishes from the table to the work table so they could be washed.

  Benjamin watched as the girls helped her clear off the table, and then went into the kitchen to wash the dishes with no argument. He stared at Emily in disbelief when she joined him in the parlor a few minutes later. “How did you do that?”

  Emily was confused. “How did I do what?” She hadn’t done anything miraculous that she could see.

  “Get them to do dishes so easily. I’ve been trying to get them to help with dishes ever since Anna died, but Georgie would start to whine, and Abbie would say she needed to calm Georgie down, so I would do the dishes myself. Every day.”

  Emily smiled. “I simply told them it was time they started doing the dishes and showed them how. They did the lunch dishes earlier.” She dropped her voice. “I overheard Georgie complaining about having to help, but Abbie said they needed to do them to keep me happy, because she was sure I hated doing them, too.” Her eyes were sparkling with laughter when she told him.

  He laughed. “Yeah, right now, they’ll do anything to keep you happy, because they don’t want to go back to eating bacon sandwiches.”

  “I want to thank you again for the fabric. I’ll start making a dress tomorrow. I didn’t have time today with all the baking, and I wanted to get the girls clothes mended and see what they needed.” She leaned against the back of the sofa, watching him out of the corner of her eye.

  “Do you need to do a lot of sewing for them?”

  She shook her head. “There was a bit of mending, but I got it all taken care of today. With the baking done and leftover beans for lunch, there’s not even a lot of cooking to do tomorrow. I’ll cut the dress out in the morning and teach the girls how to help me with it. I may be taking out their stitches and re-sewing after they go to bed, but at least they’ll learn.” She leaned back against the sofa and brought one of her legs under her, making sure her skirt was tucked around her modestly. “I also want to get started teaching Abbie how to read and write immediately.”

  “Why? They’ll teach her that when she starts school.”

  “She’s really nervous about starting school. She wants to learn early, because it will give her confidence.” She hadn’t known her letters at all when she’d started school, and most of the other kids had. She’d felt like she was way behind, and knew it would give Abbie confidence to know more than she had.

  Benjamin frowned. “I didn’t know she was nervous about starting school.”

  “Abbie and I are a lot alike. I remembered being scared to start school, so I talked to her about it.” Emily shrugged. She seemed to know what Abbie was thinking and feeling most of the time, and she liked it that way. It made her job as a mother much easier. Of course, everyone knew what Georgie was thinking, because if she thought it, the words were soon coming out of her mouth.

  “Well, of course, I want you to do what you can to make her feel better about it.” He looked at her dress, hating how old and faded it looked, but not wanting to tell her that. He really wanted her to have her new dress done before he had her help him in the store or even took her to church. As a businessman, he knew he needed to keep up appearances. “How long do you think it will take you to make your new dress?”

  She made a face. “I know this one is awful, but I didn’t have the money or the time to make a new one before I came out here.” She thought for a moment. “If I spend a good amount of time on it every day, I can probably have it done by Saturday, I think.”

  He nodded. “Do that.”

  She blushed. “Do you want me to stop coming into the store until I have it ready? I can send the girls in by themselves with your meals if I need to.” She didn’t want to embarrass him, and she knew her clothes were appalling.

  He could have kicked himself for bringing it up. “Of course not! Just finish it soon.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  The girls came into the room then, having finished the dishes, and the discussion was dropped. She’d hurry with it, though, because she didn’t want to be an embarrassment to him.

  Chapter Seven

  Emily worked as hard as she
could on the dress for the remainder of the week. While she sewed, she had both Abbie and Georgie work on learning how to write their letters. By the time Saturday evening rolled around, they could both read a few simple words, and her dress was finished. She decided to surprise Benjamin with it by wearing it when he got home from work.

  She was surprised with how quickly she’d taken to being married. She had known she’d enjoy being a mother to the girls, but she had been surprised by how much she’d enjoyed her time in bed with Benjamin. Just thinking about the time they spent together after the girls went to bed, she blushed. Benjamin could make her entire body sing with pleasure without even trying. With as often as they made love, she knew she’d be pregnant before long. She sometimes caught herself daydreaming about having a little boy or girl. She’d love to be able to give Benjamin a boy. She knew he loved his girls, but surely he’d be thrilled to have a son. Didn’t every man want a son to carry on the family name?

  She’d made pot roast for supper, and the girls set the table for her. They were getting to where she didn’t even have to ask them to do the chores she’d designated for them. Even Georgie’s room had looked tidy that morning after she was finished picking it up.

  Everything was on the table and ready. She glanced at the clock and saw it was five past six. He’d be home any minute. She’d fixed her hair in a new way. She smoothed her dress down and straightened her apron. She was fidgeting and she knew it.

  She filled each of their glasses with milk and took the pie out of the oven to cool while they ate. It was blueberry, which the girls insisted was Benjamin’s favorite.

  As soon as she set the pie on the work table Benjamin came into the room. He took a deep sniff and smiled appreciatively. “Every day I come home to new smells. You’re spoiling me.” He dropped a kiss on Emily’s cheek before straightening up to study her. “Your new dress looks beautiful on you. No one is going to notice me at church tomorrow when I have such a pretty lady on my arm.”

  Emily blushed. “You don’t have to call me pretty,” she whispered. “I know I’m not.” She knew pretty to him was blond hair. Short of wearing a wig, she would never have blond hair, so she’d never be pretty to him. She hated it, but she knew it was true.

  His eyes widened in surprise, but he didn’t respond because the girls were listening. They’d talk about it later. He couldn’t let his wife go another day without realizing how pretty she was.

  After the girls were in bed, she went straight to their bedroom as had become her habit, to change into her nightgown and braid her hair for sleep. Benjamin had gone outside for a brief walk as he did every night, while she readied herself. She knew he didn’t really want to walk so late at night, but was thankful for the time he gave her to prepare herself for bed.

  She stripped off her new dress and hung it lovingly in the armoire. She would happily wear it to church the following morning. She’d never owned anything quite so fine, and was very proud of it. She put her nightgown on and slipped between the sheets, knowing Benjamin would be back soon. She was always careful to cover herself up before he came in. He’d only seen her naked body once, and that was the morning after their wedding.

  Within a minute of her getting into bed, he opened the door and quickly stripped off his clothes. She turned her head before she could see him unclothed, and he got into bed with her without turning down the lantern.

  “You forgot the lantern,” she reminded him.

  He shook his head, looming over her in the dark. “Tonight I want to watch you while I make love to you.”

  She clutched the covers to her chest. “Why?” She couldn’t let him do that, could she? The other time he’d seen her it was because it was daylight. Surely it wouldn’t be proper to leave the lamp lit just because he wanted to see her.

  He brushed his lips across hers. “Because you’re beautiful, and I like to look at you.”

  She shook her head. “No, I’m not. I saw the picture you have of Anna in your drawer. She was pretty. I’m not.” Why did he keep telling her she was pretty, when he knew she wasn’t as well as she did? He was ashamed of her in her old clothes, and she could tell. If she were pretty, he’d be proud of her whether she was wearing something new or not.

  His hand stroked down her body, and he was thwarted, as usual, by her nightgown. “She was pretty in a different way than you are. She was loud, where you’re quiet. Tall where you’re petite. The two of you are as different as night and day, but that doesn’t mean you’re not pretty, too.”

  “No one has ever said I’m pretty before.” She stared up at him and realized that wasn’t true. “Well, my mother did, but she doesn’t count.”

  He smiled as he pressed kisses along her collarbone. “Of course her opinion counts. The girls think you’re pretty. I think you’re one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen in my life.”

  She turned her head to the side to give him access to her body. His fingers went to the buttons on her nightgown, pushing it open. His lips quickly followed the V he created as his hands went lower, catching the skirt of her nightgown and pulling it up.

  “I wish you’d quit wearing these silly things. Why bother when you know I’m just going to take them off?” His lips were making her tingle inside. “You’d save yourself some laundry if you just skipped them altogether.”

  He coaxed her into a sitting position and pulled her nightgown over her head, his eyes going to her breasts which were now bare for him. His lips brushed against her nipple taking one into his mouth to suck on it.

  She moaned softly, caught up in what he was doing, but still self-conscious about the light. “Please turn the light off,” she whispered. She was almost panicked at the idea of him watching her while they made love. How could he think it was okay to do that?

  “But then I couldn’t see how beautiful you are when I do this,” he whispered as he slipped his hand between her thighs, finding her opening. “I want to see your face when you find your pleasure.”

  She blushed, but couldn’t stop herself from responding to him. He rolled to his back and pulled her on top of him, straddling his hips. Her eyes met his filled with shock. What was he doing? They couldn’t make love this way. Could they?

  She looked down and saw his erection for the first time. She was shocked to see how big it really was. How had that fit into her? It was a good thing she hadn’t seen it before they’d made love for the first time, or she’d have been even more afraid than she already was. She reached down and took it into her hand, something she’d never done. It felt strange to her.

  He let out a groan and she let go as if her hand was on fire. “Did I hurt you?” she asked.

  He laughed quietly, shaking his head. “It felt good.”

  “But is it okay for me to touch you there? It’s not wrong?” Her eyes met his as she searched for her answer. Surely she shouldn’t touch him there.

  “Nothing is wrong between us. We’re married.” He caught her hand and brought it back to his member, showing her how to stroke him to make him feel good.

  She watched his face as she continued the motions after he removed his hand. She was surprised to see she could bring him so much pleasure. She moved her hand slowly, and then faster, watching his face to see what he liked best. After a moment he caught her hand. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Not at all. I just don’t want to finish without bringing you pleasure.”

  “Finish?” She stared at him blankly for a moment, and then understanding dawned and she blushed. “You mean you could do that from my hand on you?”

  He nodded, amused at her innocence. Even after almost a week of marriage where he’d done his best to tutor her in the ways of love, she was still incredibly naïve. “I want to be inside you when it happens.”

  She blushed, and started to roll off him onto her back. He caught her hips. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “You said you want to be inside me. I want that, too.” As soon as the words were out of he
r mouth, she clamped her hand over it. How could she have said something like that to him?

  His hands lifted her hips and positioned her over him. “I want to see how you like it this way,” he whispered. He pressed up as he put pressure on her hips to get her to move down. Gravity did most of the work for him, and within a moment, she realized what he was doing as he pressed deep inside her.

  For a moment she sat stunned, unsure of what to do. She bit her lip, simply enjoying the feel of having him inside her. He flexed his hips upward, and she moaned. “That feels good.”

  He smiled. “Good. Move around. Do what feels good to you.”

  She stared at him in surprise. He wasn’t going to control their movements? After a second, she leaned forward, putting a hand on either side of his shoulders to catch her weight. She moved her hips up for a moment and then right back down. He groaned and she was shocked by how much pleasure riding him this way brought her.

  It didn’t take her long to find her rhythm, and a few minutes later, they both found their release. She felt the sweat trickling off her body as she rolled to her side beside him.

  He reached out to turn the wick down, and she snuggled into his arms with her head on his shoulders. She was too embarrassed to say anything, but she fell asleep with a smile on her face. Marriage was definitely to her liking.

  *****

  She was careful to avoid his mother during church on Sunday. Georgie ran to her farmor hugging her tightly, but Abbie clung to her hand throughout the time before and after the service. She spoke with Birgitta and a few others she’d met during the week during her forays into the store, but mostly she stayed to herself, which suited her and Abbie just fine. She enjoyed watching groups of people; she just didn’t enjoy being parts of those groups.