“I would like that very much,” Rosaline replied, and smiled at the relieved look in his honey brown eyes.
***
They walked side by side through the pens of cattle as Thomas pointed everything out and told her about his home. She loved how passionate he was about the ranch. For all of his misgivings and past mistakes, he was a man with a good heart.
The area around the homestead was divided into several pens and the yard where the house, barn, and other buildings stood. It was a warm, cheerful place that brought an inexplicable sense of peace as they strolled together in the morning sun.
She couldn’t help but glance at the way his mouth tipped up when he spoke, the angle of his chin tilted to the right.
There was a lull in the conversation as they stood looking at the big brown barn that housed all of the hay and supplies used to feed the cattle and horses.
Thomas cleared his throat after a few minutes. “There is something I would like to discuss with you.”
Rosaline’s heart thumped in her chest.
Was he about to tell her that she had to leave? Or was he going to give her a chance?
“I think we should get married,” he declared.
She stared at him with her mouth slightly open. This was definitely not what she had been expecting.
“My father was right. We need someone who can look after the house and be a mother to Robbie.” He paused and looked away before turning back. “That is if you still want to stay...” His words trailed off on a hopeful but uncertain note.
“I...I do,” she stammered. There was a look of relief in his eyes that tugged at her heart. She thought she saw a glimmer of a smile at the corner of his mouth before he continued.
“I can’t offer you love,” he cautioned, “but I can offer you a place to stay and a part in this family.”
Rosaline tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I would like that very much.”
“I thought of you just staying on here as a maid and carer to my son, but that would lead to speculation on behalf of the town that would tarnish your reputation.”
Rosaline’s heart leaped with joy. “I understand that this will be a marriage in name only.” This was exactly what she needed, a home of her own and a place away from the Vosses.
Was this the miracle she had been asking God for?
Chapter Nine
Light streamed through the tiny windows of the town chapel.
The wooden pews were empty except for Arthur Stratton and Ezrah Gideon, who sat on either side of the bride and groom as they stood before the altar. They had come as witnesses to the union.
Buena had stayed at the ranch with Robbie, who was far too fussy and unsettled to sit in a chapel. Rosaline wore a beautiful dress, courtesy of one of Buena’s daughters in law, and her auburn hair was braided with wild sunflowers that matched the bouquet she held in front of her.
Rosaline had gathered the flowers herself, determined that she would have at least this part of a more traditional wedding. She’d gone for a walk after her talk with Thomas, returning after an hour with an armful of flowers.
“I noticed them beside the road and thought they would make a lovely bouquet,” she admitted sheepishly when Thomas shot her a questioning look upon her return.
They had agreed that the wedding would be simple and plain. No fanfare or ruckus.
Arthur had gone into town to arrange the wedding and fetch the dress that Buena had instructed him to collect, before coming back and helping his son into his finest suit.
The simple elegance of the blue dress wrapped around Rosaline’s frame, bringing out the brightness of her eyes and the soft glow of her skin. Her face was covered with a simple veil that hung to the floor, and she smelled faintly of the lemon oil Buena had insisted she dab behind her ears.
Thomas shuffled uncomfortably in his Sunday suit as he stood next to Rosaline in the wooden chapel. He hadn’t set foot in the building since his wife’s funeral, a day he’d sooner forget.
He listened with half an ear as the Reverend, solemnly gowned in black robes, snow-white cravat, and white surplice, prattled on about the virtues of marriage. God’s opinion of the union was not something that Thomas was overly concerned about. This was a marriage of convenience.
He needed a mother for Robbie. He would offer her support, and she would be a mother to his infant son. There was nothing more to it, no question of love or romance. That was a part of him that belonged to his wife, and it was a vow he wasn’t willing to break. Nor could he break it even if he wanted to. He knew he was incapable of ever loving again.
