WAKING UP TO GOLDILOCKS

By Celia Jolley

(A Just for Fun Fiction 2014 reprint locked up by Facebook)

She wanted an Easter wedding.  He wanted no wedding at all.  How had he gotten hog-tied into this?  Brett had no idea.  Sonja had always singled him out, hung on his arm; and as she got prettier, he didn't mind it so much.  Then somewhere along the line, she started talking about their understanding.   He guessed he hadn't paid that much attention.

One night walking her home, she seemed lie she was ripe for a kiss, offering her lips up with her eyes closed.  So, he gave her one, then another.  His fate was sealed then.  She began telling her girlfriends that it was settled, and his buddies began asking him if it was true.  Finally, the worst came after her father confronted him and asked what his intentions were.  Should he be truthful and say that his only intention was to give her a kiss after their years of being linked together like a horse to a buggy, or rather a horsefly to a nag?  He told him his intentions were as honorable as a kiss could be.  They took it and ran.  Wedding plans multiplied faster than fruit flies in August.

What made it worse was when his much loved Grandma died and left him her house in town.  It wasn't all that much to look at, but was special in his memories.  Yet, even that that seemed to indicate to everyone in the county that he was ready to settle down any minute now.  Brett had moved in as his grandma intended and liked being a bachelor.  It was only a couple of miles to ride out to his families' ranch where he spent his time wrangling, and his ma still fed him.  Brett did not ever let Sonja in past the front door, but he could tell that her head was whirling with ideas on how she would put her mark on the place.  

But Brett liked it just how it was, as a gathering place where family memories were made.  The oval framed portraits of his grandparents hung over the upright piano.  He could imagine his grandma playing the old hymns on it or Christmas carols where they all stood around singing.  His Uncle Buford would play his mouth harp along, which was better than hearing his off-key inharmonious lusty singing.  The only thing more jarring was thinking about the upcoming nuptials.  

The best idea Brett could muster up was to try and stall the ceremony hoping she'd tire of his bull-headed ways and give up on him.  Sonja was probably the prettiest gal within fifty miles, but her she-ways were always grating on his nerves.  He preferred a calf bawling for its mama than her calling his name down the street.  Her laugh was like a chicken cackling.  She always looked like a barn cat with a mouse in its mouth when she corralled him.  

It was all he could do to sneak into his own house, pull down the shades and light a single candle in the back of the kitchen so she would not notice when he got home.  He came to jumping as badly when she knocked as when the teacher's chalk screeched on the chalkboard.  He'd tried to tell her that he wasn't the one for her, but she refused to listen.

Finally, his ma sat him down, and in between drowning a mountain of mashed potatoes with gravy, and biting the crispy chicken leg, she point-blank told him he'd half to spell it out to Sonja or marry the gal.  It kind of unsettled his stomach and pert near ruined his appetite.  That night he had planned to write her a letter, but got home so dog tired from an all-day branding party that he fell sound asleep on the couch with his boots still on.  He had not lit a candle or rattled a kettle or started a fire, he was that weary coming in late like that.

Elise was worn to a frizzle frazzle and was covered in road dust stuck on with sweat.  At least when the stage broke down, the evening breezes had begun to cool, and there was a crick nearby to splash the dirt off her face anyway.  The poor excuse for a meal at their noon stop had long since worn off leaving her feeling weary and weak and all the passengers more than a tad bit grouchy.  It took them three hours to unhitch one of the horses for someone to ride back to get a new wheel, then to return and mount it.  They finally rattled into Stony Creek, her destination, way past dark time.  They threw down her stachel and left in a hurry powdering her with more dust like sifting cocoa on a cake.  She figured she had just about enough money left to stay one night in a hotel, but when Elise looked all around, she found no such establishment.  The only lights came from the saloon a block away.  All the other businesses and houses were shut up tight, dark as a funeral procession. 

As the girl was deciding what to do while still standing in the middle of the street, a man came weaving towards her from the saloon calling out, "Hey girlie, watcha doin'?"

Elise realized she had to do something quickly, even desperately, and ran to the nearest house where she pounded on the door.  No one answered.  For a drunk, the vile man sure had moved quickly and soon would be in the yard, so she tried the door.  It was unlocked.  Elise slipped in, locked it, and peering around in the dark timidly calling, "Hello.  Anybody home?"

When no one answered, she heaved her heavy satchel along walking room to room finding no one.   At each door, she put her ear on it to listen for snoring before she found them empty.  Satisfied she was alone and had not disturbed anyone, Elise melted onto the bed in one of the rooms and fell into a sound sleep, so sound she might have been a lost star sunk in a vast night sky.

All Brett knew when sunshine poured in the window was that the knocking on the door was like hammer in his head to add to the crick in his neck from sleeping on his couch.  Drats!  Sonja had found him.  He'd forgotten to close the curtains.  He jumped up tucking in his shirt tails as he answered the door.  Sure enough, there was Sonja, hands on her hips with her head tilted looking like she owned him.

Suddenly, her eyes opened up wider than a barn door with a face changing faster than a twister sweeping across a prairie.  It finally registered that he'd hear the click of a door opening behind him.  But before he could turn his head to look, Sonja slapped him hard enough to spin his head around if it wasn't so tightly screwed on.  It was hard enough even to make him forget the crick in his neck.

As her face turned moulten, Brett turned around to find a young woman in a crumpled skirt and a white blouse turned brown with dirt standing right outside his bedroom.  She looked as shocked as he felt.  Brett turned back around in time to receive another slap on his other cheek from Sonja, rather biblical-like.  

His ears were burning as Sonja screeched, "That's it! We're over!  The wedding's off.  You are lower than...than a rattlesnake eating a pet chicken!"  She stomped off his porch slamming the front gate so hard it swung back open as wide as his mouth had dropped.

He shut his door and his mouth after looking around to see how many townsfolk had witnessed her tirade.  Unfortunately, he only spied the biggest gossip in town,  Mrs. Pew on her way to market  Judging by the look on her face, she had not missed a thing.  He peeked out the window to see her hussy-footing it over to Sonja as fast as her log-legs could carry her.  He actually did not know what her legs looked like, of course, but he had always imagined that they had to be pretty sturdy to hold up the rest of her carriage.  The  woman ungracefully swept over to smother a weeping Sonja into her bossom.

Turning around safe inside his house, he felt like dancing a jig and shouting a campmeeting style "Hallelujah!"  Then he remembered the girl standing astonished behind him.  He could still feel the sting on his cheeks and was sure he wore the imprint of Sonja's hand coming and going.  

Not knowing what else to do, he strode over and stuck out his hand saying, "Hello, my name is Brett Fowler.  Welcome to Sony Creek and I want to thank you for what you just did."  He knew it was a stupid thing to say, but he had never prepared himself for such an awkward moment before in his life.  He didn't even know this could really happen to folks, especially not here in his hometown.

"My name is Elise Prentice.  I'm the granddaughter of Charlie Prentice.  I've come to live with him, but the stage broke down, and I got in so late and could not find a place to stay and ran here when a man came chasing after me out of a saloon and scaring me half to death, and I know I must look a fright..."

She ran on, she knew, but was shaking before this young man who towered over her with astonishment in his sky-blue eyes and with a woman's handprint slapped pink on both of his cheeks.  She finally finished meekly, "I'm so sorry to have caused you trouble.  I just didn't know what else to do, and no one seemed to be home last night, and I guess I fell asleep and did not hear you come in, and .."

"I'll be a knocked-kneed horn-toad, if you aren't the best thing that ever came along in month of Sundays!  You don't know how happy you've just made me.  I've been trying to break up with that gal forever."  Then his face fell as he asked huskily, "Did you say, Charlie Prentice?"

"Yes.  He's my grandfather.  I've come to live with him."

"Well, I'm sorry to say, he's...he's moved on."

The girl gasped, and for a minute he was afraid she would faint as she seemed to sway on her feet lilting a little to the left.  Brett grasper her arm and led her to his grandma's rocking chair by the sofa.  He took her hands into his as he squatted down before her.  "Your grandpa was a good friend of our family.  We never wanted anyone else to our farrier work.  The only trouble is that...well, you see, he died a couple of months back.  He got kicked in the head real good by Angus Scoffield's mean ol'mule.  Charlie never did come to, but lingered on a bit until he finally gave up the ghost .  We couldn't find any next of kin to notify.  You can rest easy that we gave him a nice send-off.  Why, most of the town showed up at the cemetary for his burying, and so many fellows threw a fistful of dirt in the hole on top of his casket that we hardly had to use the shovel at all."

He watched as the girl's eyes pooled before spilling in rivulets down her pale cheeks.  This made him more nervous than when he'd accidently run over the Mrs. Pew's cat once.  He stammered, "I'm sorry.  We had no idea ol'Charlie had any kinfolk, certainly not a pretty lil' thing like you."  Brett looked back at the front door as if Sonja might return with reinforcements and quickly added, "I think I'd better take you out to Ma's since I gotta go to work anyway.  She'll set you up fine and dandy and feed you like a baby bird in its nest."

Brett scratched his head.  He only had one cow pony and had never ridden  double on him- except for all those lost calves slung over his saddle.  He figured there was a first for everything.  Sonja had always insisted on a buggy, or at least a wagon, but those would take time to rent.  Besides, Brett didn't feel like parading around town with a new gal sitting pretty beside him.  He still hestitated not knowing whether to heft her up first to ride in front of him or to mount and pull her up behind him.  He decided on the latter.  When he yanked her up to swing behind him he realized she didn't weigh more than frog spit nohow.  

"Hold on around my middle," he instructed, trying not to notice her pulling her skirt down while still leaving a lot of leg showing.  He figured he'd better go a back way, or else they'd be like a stick of dynamite thrown on the gossip bonfire.  "Have you ridden before?"

"My pa always declared that his horses were only farm animals fit for the plow or to pull a wagon.  But a long time ago Grandpa Charlie came to visit and tried to teach me when I was just a bit of a girl."

"You ain't all that much more of one now, if you ask me, but of course you're not.  I mean, you weren't nothing to pull up behind me just now.  Hold on tight.  I wouldn't want you to blow away in any ol'gust of West Texas wind."  Brett wasn't thinking about what he was saying 'cause his mind was getting all twisted with his tongue.  He couldn't help but notice that the girl was all that, warm like, hugging him tightly as he told her to with her head laying between his shoulder blades.  It was enough to make a man sweat, so finally he croaked, "I was just going on.  You won't blow away, so don't worry about holding on so tight none."  She eased off enough so he could breathe again.

He found out a lot about her as they rode out to the ranch. She sniffed a bit when she told him how her parents had died of the influenza a few weeks ago.  Her only other relative was a first  cousin once removed who was out to sea.  She had been sure her Grandpa Charlie would take her in.  Brett assured her that Charlie would have been tickled pinker than a piglet to have her come like this, if only he'd lived a little longer.  It made him want to go shoot that mean mule that robbed this poor girl of her grandpap.

As he rode up in the farmyard, the cowboys were still hanging around sucking the last dregs of their cigarettes before saddling up.  His Pa was standing on the porch finishing his cup of coffee, cradling the thick ironstone mug in his big cracked hands.  Ma came out too shading her eyes to see who was with him.  When Elise slipped down, Pas nearly spewed his coffee out, and the cowpokes' smokes fell in the dirt right before they swept their hats off in honor of the lady.  But Ma rushed over to greet Elise as if she had been expected.  Brett followed them inside, not daring to look back at the slack-jawed, google-eyed cowboys standing by the corral fence.  

Brett likewise thought to take off his hat, but raked his hand nervously through his uncombed hair and made the introductions.  "This is Miss Elise Prentice, granddaughter of Charlie Prentice, who has just come to live with her grandpa, which of course she can't do now, under the circumstances.  Miss Elise, this is my ma and pa, Susan and Bill Fowler."

Pa shook her hand gently before sinking down into his chair while Ma offered Elise a seat.  Brett went on, "I didn't know what else to do, but knew you would think of something.  And by the way, Sonja called the wedding off, but Mrs. Pew will have a high ol'time with gossip since Miss Prentice spent last night in my bedroom which fired up Sonja a mite when she discovered it..."

"Brett Fowler!" Ma gasped but had a wrinkled forehead trying to puzzle out all the disjointed chunks of information.  

Miss Elise hurried to explain, "The stage was broken down, and by the time they got it fixed and they dropped me off in town very late, but there wasn't a hotel as far as I could see, and a drunk from the saloon started chasing me, so I knocked at the first house I came to, and when no one answered, and I found the door to be unlocked, so I let myself in.  Since I thought no one was home, I fell into a bed and slept so soundly that I didn't wak up until his friend knocked on th door this morning.  Unfortunately she spied me coming out of his room when he answered the door.  That was before he even knew I was there behind him..."

"I surely didn't, Ma.  I came in so hang dog tired that I fell asleep on the sofa with my boots still on.  I didn't hear or see Miss Elise until after Sonja slapped me."

"I can see you turned the other cheek so she could slap you again, son," Ma said with a hint of humor quivering on her lips.

"She was screeching like a coyote with his tail afire and ran off smack into Mrs. Pew's chest, I mean, arms."  Brett grinned like a jack-o-lantern and gleefully added, "At least the wedding's off."

"There's no other kinfolk, Miss Prentice?" Pa asked solemnly making Brett's grin slide off his face.

"No sir."

Ma and Pa sat and looked at one another for a long time in that unspoken way they had of talking things over without saying a word.  Pa finally took a deep breath and speared Brett straight in the eye while putting a heavy hand on his shoulder just as Ma took hold of Elise's hand.  Brett had no idea what was coming, but knew it was more serious than Mrs. Pew's cat's funeral.

"You'll have to marry her son."

"Don't you see, I don't have to marry her after all!  Sonja called it off!  I'm finally free!  There doesn't have to be a wedding now.  I think it's awesome!"

Ma tried to explain this time.  "No, son, you don't understand.  Miss Prentice spent the night alone with you in the house.  You have to marry her.  It's the only way to save her reputation.  It's the only choice a gentleman has."

Brett quit breathing while Miss Elise turned white as a sheet.

"You don't have any other choice, Son.  It will solve Miss Prentice's problem as well by giving her a home.  I'm certainly glad that you are free of the likes of Sonja, and I can already tell that Miss Elise is a sweet girl," Pa cajoled.

"After all, she is Charlie's granddaughter," ma tried to add persuasively, while patting Elise's trembling hand.

Brett was choking now as Pa slappeded him on the back.  Finally, he was able to stammer, "But we didn't even know each other was there!  The first I ever saw her was when Sonja came to the door, and Elise walked out of my bedroom...oh."

Miss Prentice was weeping quietly now on his ma's shoulder.  "You'll feel better, dear, when we get the road dust cleaned off of you.  You can stay here and rest today.  We won't have the judge come out until tomorrow.  I think it would be better to use him to officiate than to split the church over this like it would if we asked the parson to come perform the ceremony."

"Tomorrow?" Brett stammered incredulously.

Pa nodded to the door and prodded the numb, lumbering lad out the door while he was still shaking his head in disbelief.

Once out in the cool of the barn, Pa went on to give him a little man to man talk.  "You can give her time, son.  Court her there in your house like  bringing her flowers and candy and sitting on the porch swing come an evening.  She's still a young thing, and I think this has come as a shock to her more than you.  After all, you had at least come to face getting married, even if it was to the wrong girl.  Now, I think you've come across just the right one, the one God has for you.   Treat her gentle-like."

"What about me?  I had nothing to do with her coming to the house."

"God must have sent her there for her safety and will continue to use you to protect her.  She is a pretty, sweet gal, if you hadn't noticed."

"But, Pa, marriage is for life.  I don't have a clue if she could begin to love me or if she will hate me for this."

Pa smiled slyly, "Couldn't be as bad as marriage to Sonja, right?"

"But she looks as scared as a cat-cornered mouse."

"Course she does.  But can you imagine what Mrs. Pew and her like will do to her before this is over if you don't hurry up and marry the girl?  Those biddies would viciously attack and pluck every feather off her  calling that bitty gal every name in the book before shunning her.  She would never live it down.  The poor thing has nowhere and no one else to turn to.  We're her family now, just like Charlie would have wanted.  Who knows, but maybe he didn't grab God's ear to ask Him to do this very thing.  The townfolk might still give her a bad time, you too for that matter, but side by side and with us standing with you both, you can weather this storm."

"She might refuse me."

"Then you'll have to convince her.  Ma will help.  But like I said already, be gentle with her.  If you can't win her over as a wife, she can have the marriage annulled in two or three months, but it would still be a stain on the both of you.  Then we'd still have to find a place for her."

"Annulled?"

"The judge would have to decide, but you two might not want to give out that much private information on which he would need to make his decision.  I don't believe that is in God's plan, though.  Just consider it if she is desperate to get away.  As for you, you have to do everything in your power to make her believe she can trust you to be a good husband."

"I feel like a tornado hit me and lifted me up only to set me down in some strange place."

"It was time you were thinking about settling down.  As hard as it gets, just be thankful she's not Sonja."

The rest of the morning Brett poured himself into his labor until he had never worked so hard in all his life.  The other cowboys couldn't help but notice how squirrely he was, and how he'd just grunt if they asked any questions about the pretty thing he'd brought from town.  After they finished branding, he went inside to eat lunch with the family.  Then he went out to ride the range looking for more calves.  It was his eyeballs that were branded though.  He couldn't get an image of her golden hair and big calf eyes out of his mind.  She glowed there like an angel.

By the time Ma rang the supper bell, Brett had found his appetite that he feared he'd lost.  Since he left his muddy boots outside and entered on stocking feet, Miss Elise did not hear him come in, but he saw her.  She was a creature as pretty as a newborn filly with her golden hair sleek and tied back with a ribbon.  He noticed how her tresses clurled slightly at the ends.  She'd washed up and was wearing some of Ma's clothes cinched up at the waist.  Even though she was swallowed up by an apron, he knew she was all there after the ride this morning.  He was feeling a bewilderment like he'd never felt before.  Finally, she looked up and saw him staring at her and blushed deeper than the sunset pink outside.  Brett was such a jumble of thoughts that he had to sit down quick-like.  He put his head down and raked his fingers through his unruly hair.

With his hat off, she noticed the tan line below where his hat had sat with paler skin above like a high water mark.  He was still dirty, except for his hands and face where he'd washed up outside.  She even managed a satisfied grin that she had not been the only filthy one.  He suddenly looked up and caught the faint smile and looked quizzically at her as mystified about her as if she was the Queen of Sheba just come by stage.  Elise had to look away.  Supper was spent in much the same way as they both were doing everything in their power not to chance a glance at one another, constantly darting their eyes quickly away like minnows in a stream. 

Finally, Ma couldn't take it and burst out laughing.  "You two are more skittish than the calves at branding time.  Maybe after dinner you can play a game of checkers or do something together to relax a bit.  You can both bed down here tonight.  There's no use you going in to town and calling on trouble till we get you hitched." Then her ma sized Miss Prentice up before saying,  "I believe you might fit in my wedding dress, dear.  I was a mite bit smaller back in those days."

The sun had set a while ago, but her cheeks were still flaming.  "Are you sure?  I never imagined I'd cause this much upset.  If Mr. Fowler would druther not..."

Ma sternly stared at him hard, piercing him as if with daggers until he choked out, "It's the right thing to do, Miss Prentice.  I won't rush you even though we get married.  We have all the time in the world to court and get to know one another, but at least it will settle most of the wagging tongues in town once we are officially man and wife."  Even so, he swallowed hard and felt gut punched.  Brett was about to get roped and branded and feared the hot iron of the wedding band Pa was loaning him until he could get his own.  Ma gave him his grandmother's wedding ring to put on the poor girl's finger.  She was as trapped as he was.

Pa cleared his throat and said as if it was an every day affair, "I'll go get the judge in the morning.  Ma will fix up a fine dinner, and we can ask all the wranglers to join us since your grandpa Charlie was their friend too.  I might even give them the morning off after chores so they can clean up some.  I'm sure they're all curious and are biting at the bit to meet you, Miss Prentice."

"I'll bet they are," Brett muttered under his breath feeling a little territorial all of a sudden.

Brett only won one of three of the checker games, but hardly noticed.  He just watched her slender hands as they moved the pieces and even once in awhile looked up into a fine pair of eyes that could melt the hardest stone in Stony Creek.  Thick lashed half hid them most of the time as she kept her eyes on the game, but brandished them with a gleam when she won, looking him full on in triumph.

After they put away the pieces, he manged to ask, "Would you like to come sit on the porch with me, Miss Prentice?"

She nodded, hardly having said a word all evening.  He held the door open and put his hand on the small of her back guiding her to the porch swing.  Brett hoped she didn't feel he was as forward as he felt sitting there close beside her.  He flexed his fingers where they still felt heated from touching her.  The two of them rocked just as slight as the breeze while watching the stars come out.  

Suddenly, he pointed to a shooting star.  "See that?  Must be putting on a show for you up there.  Maybe Charlie was beating a red hot horseshoe, and a spark fell from heaven."  That brought a smile to her lips.  Enough for him to bravely go on.  "I want you to know how sorry I am that you've been forced into this situation over which we've no control really, not that I don't think you'd make a mighty fine bride.  I think it will eventually right itself.  I'm hoping we can come to a satisfactory, uh, a happy, well, you know what I mean?  You can take all the time you want to get used to me after the ceremony.  I won't rush you.  After all, you're getting the short end of the stick."

She gasped.  "Is that what you think?  You are the one who had one engagement broken and another one committed to you all in one morning.  I'd say you got the short end of the stick.  I came here without a home, and now I'll still have one, even though Grandpa's gone.  I'm thankful for you saving me, Brett.  I could have been left on the street if it hadn't been for you."

Brett felt a little of the heaviness lift in his heart and reached over to hold her hand.  She didn't pull away.  "I'll always be grateful for you saving me from Sonja.  You saw her in action.  I had tried and tried to get out of it, but you came along and made her disappear kinda poof-like all of a sudden."

She touched his cheek tracing the faint outline of the slap saying softly, "You still have a little bit of the mark she left on you."

"It's my badge of honor," he said smiling, but was feeling like he'd been touched just then by the sweetest thing in Texas.  It warmed him clear to his heart where it did a back flip.

He caught up her hand and kissed her palm before closing her fingers around it.  "You just caught a falling star," Miss Elise.  "Hold it tight and make a wish."  She was staring at him as if he hung the stars.  It was enough to make the cowboy blush.  They swung some more in silence before the mosquites chased them inside.

The next morning, Pa left early.  Ma insisted that Brett bathe in the privacy of her room.  He'd never scrubbed so much dirt away as he did today.  The water was as black as weak coffee when he was done.  Bret figured that would be the last time he would allow that much dirt to cling to him where it was hard to tell him from the other hands in the bunkhouse.  He'd always hoped his sweat would be a Sonja-repellant, but found he kind of liked being this clean.  Brett wondered how Miss Prentice could have been able to stand being saddled up so close to him on the ride out or last night on the swing.  It sure brought him down a notch as if he wasn't nervous enough.  Ma had laid out one of Pa's clean shirts and a pair of his jeans on the bed for him.  The jeans were a mite short, but that didn't matter as he stuffed his pants legs into his boots.  Brett tackled his hair next.  There was no time left for a trim, but at least he had shaved carefully so as not to leave a nick bleeding on his collar.

"Land's sake, Brett!" Ma had exclaimed when she saw the bath water.  "I hope you left some dirt outside."  Then in almost a whisper, "I hope you bathe more often now that you'll be married, son.  This won't do at all!"

"Yes, ma'am."  He winked.  "I think I'll have a little more incentive now that it's not just me and the cows."

She smiled and kissed him on the cheek.  "The Lord sure works in mysterious ways.  We couldn't have dreamt this up, but it's looking better and better all the time.  I'm already getting attached to that sweet girl, and I don't think it will take you two long to figure things out for yourselves."

"What things, Ma?"  He loved to tease her and make her blush.  Hanging out with the cowhands and listening to their rough talk had pretty much given him more of an education  than the birds and the bees, but he wasn't about to let on to his Ma.

The judge followed Pa's horse coming in his smart buggy.  Climbing out, he came right over to Miss Prentice and took her hands in his huge paws to offer his condolences for her grandfather.  "He was a friend of mine and a checker partner.  I think he let me beat him to keep me on his good side.  I liked having him around for his stories too.  My, wouldn't he have loved to hear this one, you arriving in the dark of night and scaring Miss Sonja right off the porch the next morning!  Yessirree, Brett, you sure found Goldilocks sleeping in your bed, you big bear!"  With that the man slapped Brett hard on his back almost knocking him forward off the porch.

Getting serious again, the man went on, "I'll tell you what though.  I'm going to give that stage line a piece of my mind for dropping an innocent off in the middle of the night like that after all the decent people had gone to bed.  It is shameful what they did even if the good Lord worked it out for good just like He promises His people He will do.  Speaking of which, that's what I'm here for.  I don't know when I've looked forward to giving the last rites..." the judge blushed, "I mean, the vows, so much.  Shall we get on with it?"

Brett wondered if Elise was as scared spitless as he was.  He licked his lips hoping to get his tongue untied so he could pledge his vows.  Somehow, he found himself facing her and holding her shaking hands until they calmed.  Somehow it seemed she gained courage looking up at him.  He drank in her eyes, her hair, her neck and so forth and so on down his mother's wedding gown until he felt her squeeze his hands to bring his gaze back up to where it should be.  

He did not know what was said or what he answered as he looked at her until the judge nudged him saying, "You may kiss your bride."

She had closed her eyes and was waiting with her cupid lips puckered.  He bent and took a sip of honey, the kind that tasted like more.  He was back for more until the judge cleared his throat and announced, "May I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Brett Fowler.  He opened his eyes wide to a room full of cowboys yee-hawing and stomping loud enough to bring the house down.  Cowboy hats had been tossed in the air and had fallen to the ground leaving hardly anywhere to step without crushing a crown.  He put his arm protectively around his little wife and glared at them all until they were civilized again enough to pick up their hats and form a line to shake hands.  Finally, his mother hugged and kissed him and his Pa beat him on the back a little too choked up to say anything.

Slabs of barbequed beef were brought in and all kinds of sides filled the table.  Pa said a blessing, and then the boys filed by filling their plates before they went out to eat on the porch. The family sat inside with the judge. Elise sat close beside him, probably a little unsettled by being so outnumbered by the rowdies.  Brett could only think of taking his bride and going home  Somehow getting hitched made him long to go home, to his own place, leaving his pa and ma, much as he loved them, behind.

Finally, he got up from the table, wiped his mouth with his napkin and said, "I want to thank you, Ma and Pa, Judge, for everything you've done.  I think we will be going home now."

"Oh, but I need to help your mother with the dishes," Elise exclaimed.

"No, you don't, dear.  It's your wedding day.  No bride does dishes on her special day.  Pa will help me," and she elbowed her husband.

"Sure thing.  You young'ns go on now."

Ma scurried around packing a basket with leftover food for them.  

"I brought my buggy so you could take her home in my rig, my little gift for the day.  I'll ride your horse back in and swap again once we get to town.  I thought it might steady the wagging tongues if they see you bringing her home in style.  Make sure you go around the front and carry her in over the threshold.  That'll settle it for them for sure.  In fact, I want to ride ahead so I can watch their faces when you bring your Mrs. in," he chortled.  "This will be priceless!"  Then the judge grabbed his hat while Pa followed him out to saddle Brett's horse.

"Very considerate of you, Judge," Brett said as the man left chuckling.

The boys had the judge's rig ready in no time.  Brett gently helped his new wife in, and they took off while he was grinning and she was waving.  Brett thought he saw his Ma wipe a tear with her apron, but he couldn't be sure.  Pa held her in a tight squeeze though.  After they left a quiet settled over the newlyweds.  Finally, Brett wanted to tell her what he'd been thinking all morning and said, "You sure look beautiful today.  I never have seen such a purty bride."

Elise blushed but put her hand through his arm.  It felt right.  "Thank you."  He looked down and saw a tear trickle down her face and wiped it off as gently as he could.

"I mean what I said.  I won't rush you.  You don't have to be afraid of me."

"I believe you are a man of your word.  It's just that I was missing my family today.  My ma and pa would have been happy to see me marry so well, and Grandpa Charlie would have been certainly pleased.  I'd like to think was right there along with all the other cowboys celebrating our wedding.  Your folks are some of the kindest people I've ever met."

"I wish I could say that there's a town full of ones just like them, but there arent'.  There are some I'd like you to meet and other's I'd rather protect you from.  Even in the church where you'd think you'd find it full of sweet saints, there are some of the meanest women on earth who would gladly circle for the kill.  That's why we had to do what we did today and trust God with the future.  You do trust God, don't you?"

"With all my heart."

"Good.  If we have that together, it will go a long way to making a good marriage some day."

"I hope so too, someday."

That left Brett wondering when someday would come.

Just like he said, the judge was waiting with a little group of onlookers visiting out in the street as they drove up in his buggy.

"Well, lookee here if it isn't the newleyweds, Mr. and Mrs. Fowler.  Have you ever seen a prettier bride?" his voice boomed.  The judge was sure pouring it on thick making sure everyone knew that the wedding had been done above board.  "I stabled your horse in your barn out back, Brett, so I'll take my buggy on home while you carry her over the threshold," he added to make sure Bret didn't forget his instructions.

Brett swept his new bride up and surpised them both with an unpremeditated kiss on the lips before God and everyone, as he went about going in and kicking the door shut behind them.  For once in his life, he didn't even think of Sonja, even though "hell-hath-no-fury-as-a-woman-scorned" type of heat was smoking across the street where she stood watching from her front porch.

Now what?  Brett had not thought past the wedding as that was as much of a traumatic event he could wrap his mind around up till now.  Then someone knocked on the door, and he about jumped out of his skin.  Surely not Sonja...

It was the judge.  "Here, you left this basket in the buggy.  Looks like your ma packed up some leftovers for your wedding night."  He winked at Brett and then left.

Elise took the basket to the kitchen and found places to put things after he told her he wasn't hungry yet.  She came in and sat in his grandmother's rocker, and they both stared silently into the cold fireplace as if sparks were flying.  Brett jumped up and shut the curtains, then settled back down on the sofa.  He wasn't used to being home so early in the day.

"So," they both said in unison, then laughed.  "You go first, no you..." sort of conversation followed.  Elise finally queried, "Tell me about hour grandparetns.  This was their house, you said?"

"Yep.  You would have liked them.  This was the first house that wasn't built of logs in Stony Creek.  Gramps used to say that he'd promised his bride, that's what he always called my grandma, a white clapboard house with just enough gingerbread on the porch to let people know a woman lived there.  She planted the flowers and did the garden patch.  I guess I've kinda let it go though."  He plowed his fingers through his hair after sailing his hat over to land on the back of a chair.

"That's pretty good."

"What?'

"The hat trick."

Brett grinned.  "Yeah, I guess when you get bored and living alone, you have to practice throwing something since you can't exactly swing a lariat in the house."

"Where did your grandparents live before coming here?"

"During the war they lived in Missouri and raised mules.  The army went through thousands of mules hauling supplies, soldiers, and cannons all over the place.  Once the war was over, the bottom dropped out of the mule market, so they moved to Texas to try their hand at ranching.  Ma and Pa are living in the original ranch house before my grandparents moved to town after building this place."

"Do you ever think that you'll swap places with your folks once they're ready to slow down and let you take over the ranch?"

"Most likely."  Brett was confounded how his little wife of a couple of hours could see into the future that he'd never ever thought about before.  "How'd you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Think things through like that after only being here for such a short time.  I don't even know if my ma has ever thought about that."

"I guess it's just an outsider's perspective.  Sometimes people are so up close to their own lives that they can't see beyond the busy of their days.  I don't know, it just seemed like it would be natural to eventually swap places when the time comes.  You're right blessed to still have your folks."

"Yep.  You're probably right, but my folks are mighty fond of their place right now."

"It is a homey place.  It's a good thing that the ranch isn't far from town with you having to ride back and forth every day.  Do you think I could go with you sometimes, I mean if I caught up on my chores and all...'

"Your chores?  You can come whenever you want.  The chores will still be waiting for you when you get back.  I guess you might be a little lonesome staying here every day by yourself in town before getting to know anyone.  Ma would be happy as a bee in clover to have you come out.  She's already a bit attached to you.  She told me that herself.  I think I'll be needing to get you your own horse to ride though."

"Really?  You'd do that?"

"Course.  Didn't you see our herd in the corral and in the pasture?  I'll just have to decide which one will be the most broken in for you."

"I don't know much about riding, but I'd like to learn."

"Not every gal wants to ride.  Most insist on a buggy.  I'll save up for one eventually, but for now I think you'll enjoy being in the saddle.  It's the most natural place to be for me since I've been riding since I was knee high to a gopher."

"That's truly something to look forward to, having my own horse.  My stars, I never thought I'd be so lucky."

Brett laughed.  "You sure do put a fresh perspective on just about everything.  It's kinda nice.  I hope you like this house.  It holds a lot of good memories for me.  If there's something you think you  need, let me know.  I have some money saved up and can get it for you.  You can go down to the the Emporium and look around.  If they don't have it, they'll order it for you.  They'll just put it on my bill."

"I can't think of anything off hand.  I'll look through the kitchen tomorrow and make a list."

"Can you cook?"  Brett just realized he had no idea of his new wife's homemaking skills, or lack thereof.

"I always helped my mother in the kitchen.  I'm not as good a cook as your mother, but you won't starve.  Do I need to pack you a dinner pail everyday?"

"Nah, I always eat there for dinner and sometimes supper too, but I reckon I'll be coming home at dark-thirty now to eat with you."  He whistled, "This sure all happened in a wing-ding, didn't it?"

"I had no idea what would be in store for me here in Stony Creek, but certainly not this!"

"I think it's going to work out fine.  I've been thinking about getting a dog.  That might keep you company while I'm gone out to the ranch.  It'd keep the rattlers out of the garden too.  What do you think about that?"

"I've always wanted a dog.  The barn cats that chased the mice were always a little too wild for a pet when I was growing up."

"We can get a cat too, a good mouser, if the cat and the dog can get along, that is."

Elise laughed, and Brett thought that was a sound he'd not tire of soon.

Finally, they moved into the kitchen and had what his ma had packed, relaxing as they ate.

"Everything is about like Grandma left it, but you can fix it how you like, I guess."  For the first time, he realized he didn't worry over it.  He trusted Elise.

"Thanks.  I'll be stepping into some pretty big shoes following in her footsteps here.  I think I'll be honored to think of her kitchen as my kitchen though.  It'll take me a little while to remember where everything is.  So, do your folks come in to church on Sunday/"

"Yep.  There's just one church in town, and so it's usually full.  They'll be in for sure tomorrow to stand with us."  He felt his chest fill with the thought of showing off his bride tomorrow.  "I'm certain Ma will invite us out to eat at the ranch after church, so you won't have to worry about cooking up some grub until Monday.  I must say, it'll be nice not coming to an empty house."

"I guess you never had time to properly unpack."  He coughted before adding, "Do you know which bedroom you want to use?"

"I don't want to take yours, so show me which is the other."

He brought her valise in and set it on the floor taking a quick look around.  It was his grandparents' bedroom with a pretty quilt on the double bed and nice curtains on the window.  An outdated calendar hung on the wall with a picture of a girl brushing her hair along with a couple of other primitive landscapes.  Other than some dust and cobwebs dangling, it looked comfortable enough.  "Will this do?  I guess I haven't been in here since I moved in."  Brett strode over and opened the window to allow some fresh air in.

"Thank you."  Elise sat on the bed and looked around.  It's a very nice room, very large.  I can hang my dresses on the pegs there and hopefully a lot of wrinkles will be out by morning."

"There's an iron on the top of the stove if you need it.  I'll leave you to unpack."

He walked out and pulled out his pocket knife remembering he'd notice a few days ago that his grandmother's roses were starting to bloom.  Brett cut a few, took them in and rummaged around until he found one of her vases back in a cupboard.  After pumping in some water into the sink, he put the water and the flowers in the vase and carried them to her door.  He knocked.

"Just a minute.  When the door opened, he found Elise blushing with an embarrassed look on her face.  He noticed some of the top buttons were undone from the back of her wedding gown."

"I brought you some roses.  I thought it might perk up the room a mite."

"They are beautiful." She took them but still looked miserable.  "Uh, Brett, I might need some help.  I was going to change into my nightgown, but I can't undo all my buttons by myself."  She spoke so softly that he could barely hear her.  It took a minute before he realized what she meant.

"Well, sure.  I guess it's okay, being married and all.  I can help you with that."  It was easier said than done, however.  His fingers felt like a giant's fumbling around the tiny pearl buttons.  He was shaking even.  They went all the way down.  He'd never seen anything as pretty as her bare back where his knuckles brushed above her camisole when he finally worked his mother's wedding dress free.  Elise had her head in her hands.  Somehow, bent over after undoing the last button and his breath coming heavy, he couldn't resist softly placing a kiss on the back of her neck.    "You sure are a sweet thing, Mrs. Fowler.  I think I'm going to enjoy being married to you," he said huskily.

"Thank you," she whispered.

She stood there with her face turned modestly away with one hand covering where he had kissed her on the neck.  The other side of her gown started to slip off her shoulder so he pulled it up for her and found himself still up close, right next to her.  As he stood waiting, breathing in her sweetness, she turned and lifted her face up to his as if with a question.  So he kissed her on the lips softly until she began returning his kisses slowly letting her arms creep up his chest until they clasped over his neck.

His ma was right.  They might just soon have it figured out after all, this marrying business, and it was going to be far better than he'd imagined it could be.  "Someday" was starting off just fine.  He would look forward to waking up to Goldilocks in his bed every morning, and it was just right.

Boaz, "Whose young woman is this?

Ruth, "Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me?"

Boaz, "May the Lord reward your work, and your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge."

Ruth, "I have found favor in your sight, my lord, for you have spoken kindly to your maidservant."

So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife...Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without 

a redeemer today..."  

Selections from the book of Ruth.