Frontier Gift of Love (American Wilderness Series Romance Book 5) (30 page)

In keeping with tradition, at eight o'clock the children gathered in front of the house to welcome the spirit of Old Father Christmas with a merry peal. They formed a parade with makeshift cymbals, bells, and drums—clanging, ringing, and rat-a-tat-tatting—while William followed playing his violin as he tried to make sense of their music. Bear followed William clapping his hands and humming what sounded like a Scottish tune.

Catherine watched for some time and found the entire thing hilarious. Laughing, arm in arm with the other women, she decided the love they all shared tonight would bind their hearts forever.

Sam noticed Catherine turn to leave and followed her. He opened the door for her and helped her out of her cloak, hat, and woolen scarves.

“Are you well?” he asked, removing his own coat and hat.

“Yes, Sam. I feel exceptionally well. I just didn’t want the babe to get too cold. Even with the bonfire, I could feel the temperature dropping.”

“Come, sit beside me by the fire.” He positioned their two chairs next to each other and they watched the flames lick at the huge log. It would likely burn all night and well into Christmas day. “Happy?” he asked.

“You know I am,” she said. “Christmas is my favorite time of year and I love having our family here, Sam.”

She was the only one who could say his name and make it sound special. He savored the feeling it left within him as he reached for her hand.

She gripped his hand and said, “I don’t think I could be happier, unless I were holding our babe in my arms.”

“I can’t wait to see him suckling from your beautiful breasts.”

“Have you noticed how big they’ve gotten?” she asked looking down at her chest.

“How could I not?” he replied, laughing. “I didn’t know that part of you would grow too.”

“Grow? They’ve at least doubled in size! I nearly look indecent in this gown, but everything else I owned looked even more unseemly.”

“You don’t look indecent. You look…”

“Sam!”

“I was about to say voluptuous and alluring.” He raised a brow and grinned roguishly. Then, unable to resist, he stood and drew her into his arms. He kissed her with desperate tenderness. When she deepened the kiss, it soon escalated, igniting a warmth within him hotter than the heat given off by the yule log. The soft scent of her stirred his blood as well. Her mouth tasted of apple cider and honey and he wanted to see what the rest of her tasted like. He trailed kisses down her long white neck, making her shiver a little.

She turned around and pulled her hair aside so that he could kiss the back of her neck as well. “Umm,” she murmured as his lips trailed gentle kisses across her neckline.

Then he placed his palms against her belly, holding both her and their
babe, and snugged her against him. He could already sense a bond between the three of them.

When he reluctantly released her, she giggled a little and whispered. “You know, it won’t be long until we can…”

“Yes?” he pretended not to understand.

“You know…”

“Know what?” He raised his brows inquiringly.

When Catherine realized he was joshing with her, she punched his arm playfully.

“I’ll count the minutes,” he said, staring at the tantalizing moistness of her full mouth. “But after you deliver, you must take your time healing. Just tell me when you’re ready.”

“You’ll be the first to know,” she said, grinning widely.

Chapter 30

Christmas Day, 1799

T
heir Christmas table aglow with a dozen beeswax candles, Sam said a prayer of thanks, and then stood to make a toast. “To love, unity, friendship, wisdom, and brotherhood,” he said, holding his cup high.

“Hear, hear,” the men all chorused.

“To love, unity, family, faith, and sisterhood,” Catherine said, holding her cup high and looking at Jane, Kelly, and Artis.

“Hear, hear,” the women all repeated.

“And to our courageous brother John who gave his life for me,” Sam said.

“To John,” everyone repeated.

“And to President Washington,” Sam said, “may he rest in eternal peace.”

“And to…”

“Nay, no more toasts,” Bear declared, cutting William off. “A man can na fill his empty belly on toasts and the smell of that turkey is drivin’ me daft.”

“I was just going to say a toast of thanks to our fine cooks,” William
said.

Everyone glanced over at the two women, who sat next to Catherine at the table with them since it was Christmas. Mrs. Wrigley’s family lived in Lexington, so far away that she visited them only every other Christmas. And Miss Henk had no family at all.

“Mrs. Wrigley and Miss Henk, you
have
certainly outdone yourselves,” Catherine said. “Thank you for preparing such a splendid meal. Bear, since you’re seated in the middle of the table, would you be kind enough to start carving that enormous turkey?”

“Aye!” Bear said and stood. “It smells good now, doesn’t it Catherine?” he said with a wink at her as he picked up the carving knife.

“Indeed,” she said, chuckling. “Let’s not keep the children waiting. Serve them some turkey first.”

“Yeah!” the older children all said.

“Yaaay,” Nicole and Samuel imitated. Nicole and Samuel both sat in their mother’s laps.

Sam gazed appreciatively at everyone seated at the table—his family. The entire group looked resplendent dressed in their best clothing, but the festive colors worn by the women and girls brightened the room as much as the candles. As she always did on special occasions, Catherine put on a magnificent gown. Trimmed with delicate white lace, the deep rose shade matched the color of her lips and the tint of her high cheekbones. The other women wore fine gowns too. Jane had dressed in what looked like a new green gown. Kelly‘s light blue gown complemented her blonde hair. And Artis looked like a fine jewel in her royal blue gown. Martha and Polly looked especially pretty in red dresses trimmed with white bows. And Mrs. Wrigley and Miss Henk both wore dressier clothing than they normally did and had fixed their hair up attractively.

In addition to the roasted turkey with chestnut stuffing, the large dining table was laden with holiday favorites. The delicious fragrances wafting from smoked ham, mustard and onion sauces, potatoes, mashed turnips, candied sweet potatoes, buttered squash, beans, and fresh bread and butter,
filled the room. Pumpkin, apple, and mincemeat pies, and brandied peaches, along with ginger cutouts for the children, sat nearby on the side table, reminding them all to save room for dessert. And several decanters full of wines, brandy, and rum punches, waited for them to wash it all down with.

“Rory helped with dinner too,” Mrs. Wrigley said, smiling at the doctor.

“It was my great pleasure to lend a hand,” he said, with a twinkle in his kind blue eyes.

“And a strong arm too,” Mrs. Wrigley added, blushing and smiling.

“And Artis helped,” Miss Henk said.

“You helped cook?” Sam asked Artis.

“Aye, I want to learn all I can from Mrs. Wrigley while I’m here. Keepin’ Bear’s belly full requires a great effort.”

Everyone laughed as they filled their plates and passed dishes around.

“Mrs. Wrigley can teach you how to keep a man’s stomach full. I can attest to that,” Sam said. “It’s not fancy but it is delicious.” He took a bite, savoring the flavors, of the mouth-watering turkey and stuffing that Bear just put on his plate.

“Ye can na get full on fancy,” Bear said. “I prefer good to fancy any day. This Christmas dinner is just the thing. I purely like it!”

“Uncle Sam,” Polly asked, “why is it important to celebrate Christmas?” Like her father was as a child, Polly was always asking probing questions. She cocked her head to one side, waiting for an answer.

Sam hoped he could provide her with an answer she would understand. “That’s an excellent question, Polly,” he said. “There are two kinds of knowledge. Intellectual knowledge—what we can learn with our heads. And then there’s spiritual knowledge—what we learn when we open our hearts to the spirit of God. Each kind of knowledge is important and has its place. And at Christmas, we remember that the Lord came to earth to share
that spiritual knowledge with mankind. It was a very great gift to us, one we can only accept with our hearts. We celebrate that gift by giving gifts to each other.”

“I like all my presents,” Martha said, smiling prettily. “But I like the tea set best.”

“And I like my doll with the glass eyes and blue dress,” Polly said. “But I like the present Jesus brought too,” she added, nodding her head thoughtfully.

“I love all my presents!” Little John said. “Especially the toy soldiers.”

“We saved one of your presents for after our dinner, Little John,” Sam said.

“You did!” his son said, sounding excited.

“Aye,” Bear answered, “and I saved one for Artis too.”

Artis turned toward Bear, a playful look on her face. “I can well imagine.”

Bear rolled his eyes as he said, “Nay, another kind of surprise!”

Jane cleared her throat. “Perhaps you newlyweds should discuss something else.” She glanced toward the children.

“Jane, what’s yer secret to a happy marriage?” Artis asked.

“It’s simple,” she said, with a chuckle and a smile at Stephen. “I always let him have my way.”

Aside from Stephen, the table erupted in laughter.

“When I wanted to move to Kentucky,” Stephen pointed out, “you were quite stubborn about not wanting to leave New Hampshire and still we came.”

“This is true. However, I did eventually acquiesce,” Jane said, as she buttered a thick slice of crusty bread.

“We should all thank Stephen,” Sam said. “Were it not for his courage to come here, I would have never met Catherine.”

“And I would never have met Kelly,” William said.

“And I would have never fallen in love with the most beautiful woman in the world,” Bear said, smiling down at Artis.

“And we didn’t just go west—but West—the very edge of our young country,” Sam said, “the
frontier
.” He loved the word frontier and everything it meant. It signaled a pristine world of the unknown and the undiscovered. And it offered a new beginning for those brave enough to challenge it.

“It was certainly a challenge getting here,” Jane said pensively.

“Challenges and obstacles can be stepping stones or stumbling blocks, depending on how we react to them,” Sam said. “We can’t control what happens to us in life. We can only control how well we react to what happens.”

“How true,” Artis said. “I certainly learned that.”

“So did I,” Kelly said.

“And I admire you both for how you overcame,” Sam said. “It took a great deal of courage.”

“Women are strong,” Rory said. “Most men, including me, would buckle under what those two have faced.”

“That’s because women
are
stronger than men!” Martha declared.

“And what makes you say that, young lady,” Stephen asked.

“Because God must think so. He had them have the babies,” she explained.

“No one can argue with that,” Stephen said. “I wouldn’t want to suffer through what I’ve seen Jane experience.”

“Is anyone ready for dessert?” Catherine quickly asked.

Sam wondered if she wanted to change the subject because she faced what they all knew would be a painful experience.

“I am!” Little John declared.

“Me too,” the girls both said at once.

“I’ll serve them,” Mrs. Wrigley said, standing. “I made them some of my gingerbread men.” She handed one to all five children.

“Look, mine has a funny face,” Polly said.

“Just like you, you little pixie,” Mrs. Wrigley teased.

“All right, eat your cookies while Bear and I go to the barn,” Sam said.

“But we haven’t eaten pie,” Bear protested.

“We can eat it later,” Sam said. “Let’s go.”

The two men threw on their coats and hurried out.

“I can na wait to see Artis’ face,” Bear said as they walked.

“A minute ago, your mind was only on pie,” Sam pointed out.

“My mouth was waterin’ for that apple pie,” he complained. “But yer right, now is the time to bring our surprises in.”

“Let’s hurry,” Sam said.

They rushed into the hands’ quarters and put out the small hearth fire with the sand bucket that was always kept nearby.

“Here,” Sam said, “I brought two ribbons to tie around their necks.”

“Ye’re gettin’ softhearted in yer old age big brother. I can na believe a fierce warrior like yerself would do somethin’ this thoughtful.”

“Cease talking nonsense and tie the ribbon on,” Sam grumbled. “Enough with your jabbering.”

“Now that sounds more like ye,” Bear said, bending to the task. He tried several times to tie a bow and failed miserably. His fingers were just too big.

“Let me do it,” Sam said, grabbing the ribbon. “Hold this one.”

Bear examined the ribbon Sam just tied on Little John’s pup. “Ye can even tie pretty bows now?”

“I said quit your prattle,” Sam scolded and quickly tied the other bow on. “All right, they’re ready. Here’s Artis’ pup.”

They hurried back to the front porch and Sam stuck his head in. Using his most authoritative Captain’s voice, he called out, “Little John and Artis, stand next to each other in the front room. Then, everyone cover your eyes. No peeking!”