Giovanna: The Cowboy's Calabrese Mail Order Bride (Sweet Land of Liberty Brides Book 1) (3 page)

In the morning, Giovanna dressed carefully in the new blue gown given to her by Mrs. Forsythe. “You can’t be married in your widow’s black,” she had huffed when Giovanna protested the gift. She carefully unfolded the white shawl she had worn as a veil her first time as a bride. Given to her by her grandmother in Italy, it was one of the only possessions she had left from her life in Calabria.

Mr. Gundersen, Laars, Giovanna and Rosa drove silently to the church. His family sat in two pews on the right side of the aisle, while Rosa sat with the minister’s wife behind Giovanna. After the minister pronounced them man and wife, Giovanna waited for Laars to take her hand and lead her to the altar, where they would kneel and receive Communion and a blessing, as called for in Giovanna’s Roman Catholic tradition.

Instead, Laars, took her hand, and turned around to the sparse gathering as the preacher said: “I now pronounce you man and wife! Well, go ahead and kiss her!”

Giovanna smiled even as she shivered.
I will begin marriage without absolution, God forgive me!
She stood still as Laars reached to lift up her veil.

Her eyes met his, and in their pleading he stopped halfway bent toward her, and planted his mouth politely on her cheek. He stood straight, and smiled ruefully at her obvious relief.

“Congratulations!” Mr. Gundersen came forward and took Giovanna’s hands in his. “You will be a strong wife for my Laars. He will need some reigning in ….”

The group walked down the street to the boarding house parlor. Mrs. Svenson had put out a pitcher of lemonade and glasses and arranged small cakes on a porcelain platter.

“I hope you will be happy, Giovanna,” said Ilsa. “Laars has always been … a little different. I’m sure you’ll be fine together.”

“Yes, thank you,” Giovanna said. She couldn’t help asking, “Does he like children, do you know?”

“Children? Laars?” Ilsa said with a sniff. “Well, he likes them all right, I suppose. I’ve never heard him mention them. He hardly looks at my Johan or Anna. But then, he’s always had nothing but land and cattle on his mind that I could tell. It drove several of the girls back home quite to distraction.” She moved away and called to her children and husband. “Come now, we should be heading to the station.”

Why would he want me if he doesn’t like children?
Giovanna’s eyes scanned the room for Rosa and found her sitting quietly next to Anna, enjoying the older girl’s attention. At her mother’s call, Anna stood and gave Rosa a quick hug before leaving.

“Mama, I like her,” Rosa whispered as she came next to Giovanna. “Can we visit her in Minnesota some day?”

“I hope so, dear. I do hope so,” Giovanna said before taking her place next to Laars to bid good-bye to her new relatives.

Mr. Gundersen stayed at the claim for a few days helping Laars finish a fence. He stayed in Laars’s room while Giovanna and Rosa continued to share the other. Laars slept on a pallet in the sitting room that he took up each day before he went out to do the morning chores.

Giovanna poured Mr. Gundersen a cup of coffee. She was starting to get used to the quiet ways of the Gundersen men. At first it had unnerved her, but the long silences made it easier to keep her emotions in check.

“I’ll be leaving tomorrow,” Mr. Gundersen said in his matter-of-fact way. She nodded and turned to the stove, surprised a bit when she heard him clear his throat and continue.

“Laars was the hardest of all my children,” he said. “He had a mind of his own and was careless, too. His mother and I worried a lot about him. We raised him the same as the others, but he didn’t want to stay with the family. I thought it was foolish for him to move to Dakota on his own. I can rest a little easier now knowing he has you to look after him.”

Giovanna smiled to herself at the idea that her small presence could ease his father’s mind.

“Laars grew so fast. That’s how a middle child grows, unnoticed,” the old man laughed at his own remark, and she laughed with him. 

“What about children?” she asked. “Do you think Laars likes children?”

“I’m afraid he’s not too taken with children, my dear. But neither was I at his age, until I had children of my own.”

Giovanna’s hand stopped in mid-wipe of the stove at the words and she let out a small sigh.

“I know you ask this with your Rosa in mind, and I fear Rosa is a responsibility that Laars was not ready to take yet. I believe he over-estimated himself, as usual.” He paused and tried to soften his words. “I’m not sure how it will turn out, but Rosa is a well-mannered child. Hopefully, Laars will be at peace with her.”

Giovanna didn’t know what to say. What was the old man implying? What did he mean by being “at peace with her?” She gave him a faded smile and went off to check on Rosa.

She spent the night thinking about it as Laars and Mr. Gundersen talked of the work still to be done on the claim. She was tired of being worried; she wished she could talk to someone who understood. Tomorrow Mr. Gundersen would be gone and she would be alone with Laars. She would have to move into his room, yet he still felt like a complete stranger to her. What was she doing here?
Rosa
. Rosa was all she worried about now.
Will Laars ever be able to love Rosa?
She didn’t stop to wonder whether he would ever love her.

With Mr. Gundersen gone, there would be time to get to know Laars better and find out for herself whether he could love Rosa. She wanted to appear strong and happy, the way Mrs. Forsythe had represented her positivity and energy in her letters. She fell asleep determined not to disappoint Laars with her worries, but to first prove herself as a valuable partner before seeking help for Rosa.

The next morning, Laars drove Mr. Gundersen to the stage leaving Giovanna and Rosa at home. The claim was theirs now. In three more years, Laars and Giovanna would own it outright. She was married and in charge of taking care of him and the house. This she knew how to do. She got busy straightening up the small kitchen before sitting down to braid Rosa’s hair.

“Ouch, Mama! That hurts,” Rosa said as Giovanna pulled the separated lengths of her hair tightly into the braid.

“Sorry, child, I need your hair to stay like this all day; I don’t have time to brush out the tangles later,” she said.

“I’m sorry. I know you’re busy,” Rosa said sweetly and kissed her mother on the cheek.

Giovanna watched Rosa gingerly make her way across the yard to play near the shed. She had so much to do to make the small house feel more home-like. Laars had promised her some material for curtains in the window after she convinced him it would keep the place cooler in summer and warmer in winter.

She worried that with the travel, the wedding and taking care of the Gundersen men she hadn’t spent as much time with Rosa as she should. The child spent her days reading a couple of small books Mrs. Forsythe had given her. She missed Pearl, and Giovanna had promised her a new kitten, though she wondered whether Laars would allow it. She would make sure to keep Rosa happy. Rosa was the reason she had left the beautiful mountains, wasn’t she?

She remembered Mrs. Forsythe’s words: she should find a man to love her and take care of her. Was she really here for Rosa or was she here to find love and overcome her loneliness for Frank? She wasn’t sure. Rosa was all she had. Her love for her daughter was the most priceless, precious and irreplaceable feeling. How could anyone, especially Laars, replace Frank and Rosa in her heart?

Rosa will be happier here, and if she is happy, I’ll be happy
. She’d never let anything change that.

Laars was anxious to acquaint Giovanna with all the work to do on the claim. He needed her help in more ways than just making curtains and meals, as much as he appreciated them.

He carefully showed her how to put hay out for the cattle once winter came, and explained how they would need to check all of their cattle several times a week throughout the year. He would slowly build up the herd by selling the best ones each year and until he could buy his own bull steer. Right now, he had to take his cows two at a time to a ranch 20 miles away for breeding.

“By spring, the cows will be ready to calve, so we’ll have to check them daily,” he said.

He told her that in the spring and summer they would cull the herd and cut hay. The majority of his calves sold through auction and left mid-August. A few were sold throughout the year.

“Giovanna … Giovanna?” He thought she had been listening carefully but saw that she hadn’t heard the last of his words. He worried the chores were boring to her. She had spent her life in the city, socializing, baking and moving around among crowds. Maybe open fields and silent animals weren’t as exciting, but it was their future.

Startled by his stern look, Giovanna spoke up. “Yes, the calves,” she struggled to remember the last thing she had heard him say. “I hope I’ll be as much of a help to you as you expect.”

Laars scanned her face for the truth and his eyes softened. She was so mysterious, with her far-away look that only left her face when he spoke directly to her. His eyes roamed over her, taking in her full red lips and violet eyes behind dark lashes. Her soft neck exposed as she looked up at him made him want to plaster it with warm kisses. He felt a stirring in his heart and reached out to her.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. “Jo. May I call you Jo?”

The husky sound of his voice took her by surprise. She had never seen his bright blue eyes look so full. They normally darted about flashing with thoughts of all the work to be done.

“Y-yes,” was all she could manage to reply.

He drew her toward him and reached down to place a gentle kiss on her lips, breaking away silently to look at her again.

She felt a blush of warmth rise inside her, her chest and cheeks flushing. Was Laars falling in love with her? Was the shine in his eyes real? Her heart beat uncomfortably in her chest as she struggled to reconcile this long-ago feeling with a new man. She pulled away her hand and stepped back, trying to return to an equilibrium that now seemed impossible to find.

Embarrassed by her retreat, Laars looked away and fumbled a bit with a stall door before heading inside to check on one of his cows. Her shocked eyes made him feel he had done something wrong. He knew he could make her love him, but it would take time. He couldn’t tell what she wanted from him; she never let him get too close, yet she seemed to fear losing him. He didn’t know if he could ever understand Giovanna.

Giovanna’s cheeks were still warm as she made her way through the rough grass back to the house. It was the first time she and Laars had been alone, and when she understood the beginning of desire in his eyes, the reminiscence of love and longing it brought so quickly to her heart had overwhelmed her mind and senses. Could she feel love for Laars, so soon after meeting him? With Mr. Gundersen gone, she would be sleeping for the first time in his room tonight.
Surely he won’t expect me to love him so soon.

Closing the door to the kitchen, Giovanna quickly went to work adding dry sticks of wood to the stove to bring the temperature up under the stew pot. She peeked under the tea towel covering her rising bread loaf, and then turned it into the one tin pan to bake it in the small oven compartment.

Rosa lay curled up asleep in Laars’s reading chair with her book on her chest. Giovanna quietly checked on her, concerned for the rattling breaths she was taking. Not wanting to disturb her rest, Giovanna said a quick prayer over Rosa before turning back to set out three plates at the table.

A few heavy footsteps crossed the floor as Laars made his way in from the shed. He went to the basin, poured water in from the pitcher, splashed water on his face and rubbed his hands together.

“Laars, I—dinner will be ready soon,” Giovanna stammered.

“I see that,” he said quietly before turning around.

Something about the way his muscles moved on his forearms as he haphazardly dried his hands with the bread towel brought the fluttering feeling back to Giovanna’s heart. Subconsciously tapping her hand to her chest, she moved to open the oven door.

“Here, you’ll need this,” Laars said, handing her the towel. He watched her skillfully pull the bread from the hot oven and quickly turn it out onto the wooden sideboard. The warm, yeasty smell rose to his nose and he took in a big breath. “Ahh, it’s been a long time since I had a hot loaf to eat with my supper. It looks wonderful and smells even better! You’re a good cook, Jo.”

At the sound of his name for her, she looked at him and smiled. This, too, would take getting used to, but Giovanna felt a flush of pride in her chest.

Laars stopped in the sitting room and stared at Rosa sleeping in his chair. He turned to say something to Giovanna, thought better of it, and continued to his room.

Giovanna went to gently shake Rosa awake. Her arm was too warm, and Giovanna quickly felt her forehead and put an ear to her chest.

“Rosa, Rosa, can you wake for supper?”

“Oohh, Mama,” Rosa’s black eyes flickered open and her body spasmed in short, throaty coughs. “I was dreaming that Pearl was looking for me. Do you think Mrs. Forsythe is cuddling her the way she likes?”

“Pearl is almost a full-grown cat now, my dear,” Giovanna said. “I’m sure she’s happy keeping the mice away from the flowers and feathers in Mrs. Forsythe’s hats.”

Rosa giggled at the thought, straightened herself and came to the table. “You’ve already set out the plates, Mama. That’s my job! I’ll get the forks and napkins.”

Laars noticed the smile on Giovanna’s face when he returned in a clean shirt.
She looks so young and free when she smiles.

The young family ate dinner in near silence, punctuated only by the sound of Rosa coughing between small bites of food. Laars’s eyes flashed the first time, and by the fourth or fifth time he raised a questioning eyebrow to Giovanna.

She shook her head worriedly and shrugged her shoulders, trying to make light of Rosa’s poor health. “She’s just worn out from our travels. I’ll put her straight to bed and clean up later.”

Giovanna bundled her daughter off to their room, puzzled by Laars’s lack of concern other than obviously for himself that Rosa wasn’t well. Giovanna slipped Rosa’s dress over her head and tucked her under the covers wearing her soft cotton shift. Rosa’s eyes were glazed as she smiled at her mother before closing them to sleep.

As Giovanna closed the door, she saw Laars’s shadow in his room. She paused before returning to clean the dishes with hot water poured from a kettle on the warm stove.
In a little while, he’ll be asleep. Then I can change in Rosa’s room befor
e—
”
Her mind came up with a blank. Before what? She hadn’t allowed herself to consider the moment when she would have to join her new husband in his bed. 

Laars listened to Giovanna’s movements about the kitchen. He was a man, but it wasn’t his way to press a woman for affection. By the look on her face when he had kissed her earlier, he knew it would take time. Finally, she appeared at the doorway.

“It’s all right, Jo,” Laars said. “There’s plenty of room for you. I’ll stay to my side and you’ll sleep peacefully.”

Giovanna let out her breath and quietly came into the room. Turning her back in the darkness, she undid the buttons of her dress, quickly slid it down, adjusted the shoulders of her shift and slipped under the blanket at the very edge of the bed. She made herself as small as she could.

Laars stared up at the ceiling. “Good night, dear Jo,” he said.

“Good nigh
t—
” Giovanna’s voice was drowned out by the sound of coughing coming from Rosa’s room.

“How long has she been sick?” Laars asked. “Is she contagious?”

“No! Else I would be sick by now, too,” Giovanna answered. “She’s just tired from her travels.” Giovanna was glad Laars was finally asking about Rosa’s health, even if he seemed indifferent.

Laars rolled over, but as the coughing continued, his voice took on a sharper tone. “There’s a lot to be done tomorrow and I need my sleep, Giovanna. Is there something you can give her?”

Giovanna sat up on the side of the bed. “I’ll go to her. She hasn’t slept alone in her whole life. Maybe I can keep her quiet.”

Giovanna left the room in relief and quietly went to Rosa.

By morning, Rosa’s fever was worse. Giovanna came to the kitchen to start breakfast. Laars was already at the shed
. I must tell him over breakfast that I need to get help for Rosa.

She made coffee and put a pan of biscuits in the oven. Best to talk to a man with a full stomach, her grandmother always said.
Il pane apre tutte le bocche.
Bread opens all mouths.

When Laars came in, she had biscuits and gravy on the table, and poured him a cup of coffee. With a short nod of his head, he folded his hands and said a silent prayer. “Sit, eat,” he said with his mouth full, pointing with his knife at the chair.

Rosa took a breath and sat down across from Laars. She brought the coffee cup to her lips and took a half sip to warm her throat. “Laars, I know it’s sudden, but I’m worried about Rosa. I need to take her to town to a druggist today and get some salve for her chest.”

Laars looked up sharply and studied her face. “A druggist? Faring isn’t Clarksburg. We have whatever the Pavantes have at the general store.”

“Well in any case, they’ll have what I need for her. Except what she really needs is—” Giovanna’s voice cracked.

“Go on.” Laars’s blue eyes were looking right through her.

Startled by his icy expression, Giovanna struggled to continue. “What she really needs is to see a doctor.” There. She had said it.

“A doctor! And how much is the doctor then, Giovanna?” Laars was starting to become agitated. “How long have you known Rosa needed to see a doctor?”

Giovanna’s face fell as she heard him call her by her full name. At the same time, anger rose in her as he so callously discussed her daughter’s very life.

“I told you—in my letter! The druggist in Clarksburg said she needed to see a doctor a month ago.”

“A month ago. That would be—let’s see—right before you sent me your first letter. A letter that said nothing about Rosa being sick.”

“What?” Giovanna faced him, her dark eyes flashing. “Of course I wrote about it, well at least, I said it—” Giovanna stopped in mid-sentence as she remembered Mrs. Forsythe writing the letter for her.
What else did she leave out?

“Her condition is not serious if she could just get the right medicine. I had to have some reason to leave my home and what was left of my family in Clarksburg, didn’t I?” She fought to control her tongue, but the pressure of worry and the muted emotions she had kept to fit in to the Gundersen family finally broke free.

“I see. All right, then.” Laars pushed his chair back from the table and stood. He towered over her and his silence felt like a cloud above her. He started to speak, then turned to head for the door. “I’ll get the wagon.”

Laars didn’t say another word the entire 8 miles into town. Giovanna sat with Rosa wrapped in a blanket on her lap, even though the heat of her skin and weight of her in the blanket was making Giovanna sweat. Rosa’s skin was dry and she had only opened her eyes once when Giovanna put her dress on over her head.

“Shh, shhh,
mi carina
. Everything will be all right,” Giovanna whispered to her between her prayers. Whatever would come of Laars’s anger with her over not telling him about Rosa’s condition, she would handle later. Once Rosa was well, Laars would come to know how lovely and sweet she was, and he would come to love her. Giovanna could only hope and pray.