Laurel: Bride of Arkansas (American Mail-Order Bride 25) (15 page)

Coral and Josie were in Heaven with all the attention they were receiving. They’d even asked to sleep last night with Emmeline and Adeline. The reunion and integration of families had gone off without a hitch.

She dressed quickly for, though it was still dark outside, she heard voices downstairs. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, Griffin, her father, Ansel, Clem, and Otto were sitting around the dining room table. It appeared they’d already eaten and were talking over coffee.

“Good morning,” she said, and then accepted kisses on the cheek from her husband and father. She thought the men were giving her guilty glances, though, and she said, “I think you are all up to no good.”

“Why whatever do you mean?” Griffin asked.

“You, my dear husband, look the guiltiest of all.” He glanced at her as if she’d hurt his feelings and he flicked away a fake tear. She laughed. “Gentlemen, I hope you’re not following this man too far down the garden path. I fear you’ll all be in trouble right along with him.”

Clem spoke up quickly in Griffin’s defense. “But Laurel, Griff ain’t done nothin’ wrong. Me and Otto, brung you something.”

Without thinking, she said, “Brought. What did you bring me?”

“Come, we’ll show you.”

She followed them and waited while they opened the beautifully carved, new door, and went out onto the new porch. Amidst grunts and groans, they finally made their way back into the house carrying in a large pine tree.

“We thought to bring a Christmas tree.”

“Boys, this is wonderful!”

Griffin came up behind her and asked, “Do you think you can round up some help to decorate it like you want?”

She wrapped herself in his embrace and smiled. It seemed she’d been doing a lot of that lately. “I sure do.”

Later that afternoon, she stood back from the tree and admired their work. She, her sisters, Mama, Gwenda and the little girls had used the decorations Griffin had had with Ora Lee, and Mama had brought a few with her. They’d strung popcorn garland and made bows from a roll of satin ribbon from the sewing box, and the girls hung the smaller ornaments where they could reach.

“It’s even more beautiful than it was this morning,” Emmeline said.

Laurel moved an ornament to another limb. “I agree. You know what it needs, Mama?”

“What, dear?”

“Grandmother Carlisle’s angel would be sheer perfection.” She closed her eyes and imagined the doll in a dress made of angel hair sitting atop this tree like it had on other trees in her youth.

“Here, Laurel, see if this will work.”

When she opened her eyes, she held her grandmother’s angel. “Oh, Mama, thank you.”

“She’s exactly what you need.” Adelaide, pulled the tissue from around the doll to get a better look. “Grandmother left her to the first girl who married, and that’s you.”

“We’ll take good care of her, won’t we, girls?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Coral answered. “Can we put her on the tree now?”

“I’ll help you.” Griffin scooped up his little girl and took the doll from Laurel.

“Be careful handling her dress and hair,” Adelaide cautioned. “They’re made of spun glass and you’re likely to get glass in your fingers. Rinse your hands in water when you’re finished.”

“Thanks, Adelaide.”

Darkness was creeping over the house when Laurel and the women went into the kitchen to fix something for them to eat. They began carrying food to the table and found Griffin and the others had put down blankets in front of the tree and fireplace.

“The girls and I thought we’d eat in front of the tree, like a Christmas picnic.” He took the food from Laurel’s hands. “What do you think?”

“Perfect.”

She helped finish placing the food, plates, and silverware in the middle of the blankets, and then she joined her family to share old memories and make new ones. When they finished eating, Coral crawled onto Henry’s lap.

“Grandpa, will you tell us the story about Christmas night?”

“Do you mean
The Night Before Christmas
?”

“Uh-huh.”

Laurel leaned against Griffin to listen to the story. His words took her back to when she was a little girl and her own Papa told the same story. She glanced in his direction and realized he was remembering, too. Looking at the people gathered around her this evening, these special people, her family, Laurel realized how fortunate she was to have found a life she loved. She had a husband she adored, children and the promise of more children to come.

She laced her fingers through his and looked up into his handsome face, and whispered, “I love you, Griffin Benning. Thank you for loving me.”

“Merry Christmas, Laurel, and to many, many more.”

Thanks for reading my book.

If you enjoyed reading LAUREL: BRIDE OF ARKANSAS, American Mail-Order Brides, is Number 25 in the unprecedented 50-book American Mail-Order Brides series. There are forty-nine more in the series! Find out about the rest of the American Mail-Order Brides here:
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MATELYN AND THE TEXAS RANGER, Book Two

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Acknowledgements

This book is dedicated to many members of my husband’s family all from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the great state of Arkansas.

I wish to extend an extra special thank you to my critique partner, beta readers, and my wonderful editor.

About Carra Copelin

I write contemporary and historical romances but, unlike so many other authors, I didn't write from childhood or read long into the night beneath the covers with a flashlight. I found romance novels as an adult. After reading about a million, I discovered numerous people residing in my head, all looking for a way onto the printed page.

I'm a member of Romance Writers of America and serve as President of Yellow Rose Romance Writers, plus I'm a regular contributor to the blogs, Smart Girls Read Romance and Sweethearts of the West.

My husband and I live in North Central Texas, in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex where we enjoy our family and grandchildren. In addition to writing and researching, I enjoy my Bridge group, crochet, and tracking down our relatives through genealogy.

Laurel

Bride of Arkansas

American Mail Order Brides

Carra Copelin

Copyright 2015 Carra Copelin

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, businesses, events, or locales is purely coincidental.