Lone Pine Bride (The Brides of Lone Pine #1)(41)

He looked across to where she slept, his smile twisted. What an induction to a new life and a new country. What a way to start what she might have regarded as an adventure. Yet she hadn’t complained once. Well, he was going to make it up to her and the other Seth could go and....

He caught the thought at birth, shut his eyes as exhaustion overtook him, and they both slept heavily until six in the morning despite the few times the earth shook below them.





Chapter 9


Hannah opened her eyes, stretched and shut them again. Opening them once more she looked across to where Seth was doing the same. Morning. An earthquake. Asleep in a barn not far from the man she wasn’t going to marry. It all flooded back.

Seth looked across at her and smiled. “Good morning,” he said.

“Good morning.”

He reached for his Bible. “Shall I read you something?”

“That would be nice,” she said. “

“Where?”

“Could you read what you were going to read last night? I must have fallen asleep because I can’t remember it.”

“Yes, and then we’ll do Genesis in the morning and start the New Testament in the evening. Will that be alright?”

“I should go to Lower Pine today,” she said.

“I’m not sure how the road will be.” Seth frowned as he bent over the Bible and didn’t want to think about it. Instead he started to read.

Hannah lay with her eyes shut listening. He had a nice voice, she thought, and she wanted to hear as much as she could. When he reached the end of the first chapter of Genesis after reading the Psalm she asked for more.

“I’ll do the second chapter,” he said. “But then we must get dressed and check how everyone in the house is. I also have a bit of farm work to do.”

“I’ll make breakfast,” Hannah said. “Just read chapter two and then we’ll get ready.”

He took down her dress after he finished reading and it was dry, he told her. He would go in the wash room to dress and then she could get dressed in peace while he fed the animals and collected the eggs. He would then need to milk the cows, which really he should have done the evening before.

She washed, dressed and carefully put her hair up after he left. She must look pretty for Seth, she thought, because she would probably be meeting him today. Meeting him and she wasn’t at all sure he would understand about her leaving Middle Pine with this Seth. He sounded really nice in his letters but he was sure to wonder why she came.

She didn’t know herself, she had to admit, because she could have easily gone to the Reverend’s house. But if she hadn’t come Wilfred and his family could be dead. They would probably never have got out of the house without help and Seth couldn’t get through the little window.

Except that maybe he would have done something. She was convinced he would because he was a clever man. She tied her hair back loosely with the ribbon she had with her. Really she ought to put it up more formally but she hadn’t got anything to do that so this would have to do. She made for the house and the children were in the immediate garden playing a game which involved throwing stones into little squares they had drawn in the dust.

“We’re hungry,” Lucille said, following her into the house.

“Breakfast will be ready in no time,” she replied.

“What are we having?”

“Eggs and bread. I’m good at that.”

“We usually have oatmeal.”

“I’ll see what’s in the kitchen.”

“I could help,” Monica said, walking through.

“Thank you. If Seth has some oatmeal maybe you could do that and I can do eggs and bread in a pan.”

“That sounds nice. Did you sleep well?”

“Very well and very comfortably. How is Wilfred’s leg?”

“He says it doesn’t hurt but he feels a bit frustrated because he can’t do anything. He wants to get back to the farm and do something about the house.”

“We could help you rebuild,” Hannah said.

She bent her head to frown as she recalled. Not we because she and this Seth were not a we. But she could ask her Seth if he would help and, if he was as nice as he sounded in his letters which she was sure he would be, he would be pleased to do so. If only her father was nearer because he could get his workers to erect a new house in no time. He could help in Lone and Middle Pine to rebuild the people’s houses there and she was totally confident that he would give his services free.

“We can move back and stay in the barn,” Monica said. “There’s plenty of room and we could buy supplies in Independence.”

“We need to make sure it’s safe.” Hannah began to break eggs into a pan while Monica mixed the oatmeal. “There are still aftershocks every now and again which could cause damage.”

“We can check everything. It’s very kind of you both to have us here but you need to get on with your new married life and we need to carry on with whatever is in store for us. Neither Wilfred nor I will be happy doing nothing. We could get a bath chair. I’ve heard of them and knew someone who had one. It was invented in Bath in England.”

“Seth might be able to make one,” Hannah said.

“Make what?” Seth asked from the doorway.