Love on the Horizon (A Northern Woods Novel) (2 page)

It was late when he let himself
into the rear entry of their four-bedroom ranch home. He carefully closed the
screen door behind him, aware that Nicky would be sleeping.

He quietly entered the bedroom
and found Mariah peacefully asleep, her thick dark hair spread in long graceful
waves across her pillow. He stood and admired his wife.
She is such a
beautiful woman.

Mariah was only five feet tall,
had waist-length jet-black hair that shined like glass, and eyes as dark as
black satin.  He was a lucky man when she happily agreed to become his wife. He
gently pulled the blanket up over her shoulder and placed a kiss on her
forehead.

After a quick shower, he wandered
out to the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and found a ham and cheese
sandwich, freshly made and wrapped in a plastic bag with a note taped across
the top.
I love you sweetheart
, he read with a smile. Quite often, he’d
find a message from Mariah, hidden in the most unusual places.

He sat down at the table and when
he bit into the sandwich, he realized how famished he was. They’d been very
busy the past few weeks, getting ready for winter. In Northern Minnesota, snow
sometimes arrived early, when least expected. The temperature may hit seventy
degrees one day, and a snowstorm the next. He and Art learned from experience
to be prepared for winter by the time autumn arrived.

Mariah was very understanding,
for on many days, he would be up and gone by the time she awakened, and she’d
be sound asleep when he returned late in the evening. While he sat and thought
about her, it dawned on him that she’d been extremely tired in the past few
weeks. Worried that she may be coming down with something, he made a mental note
to urge her to make an appointment with the doctor. It may only be a cold or
allergies, with the chilly winds coming from the northwest, but he’d feel much
better if she went for a physical.

He stood up, rinsed off his
dishes and headed for the bedroom. Tomorrow would arrive too soon, and it would
be another long day. 

Chapter
Two

“Morning Nick,” Art said, when he
entered the stable.

“Hey, Art. I’m glad you came in
early. I wanted to talk with you before the other men showed up. Let’s go into
my office. I made some coffee.”

“Sounds good.”  He followed Nick
and shut the door behind them.

Nick motioned for him to grab a
chair while he poured coffee from the pot on the corner table. He carried two
cups over to his desk and slid one across to Art.

“Is there a problem?”

“I hope not. I’d like to find out
what’s up with Jake.” He took a sip of his coffee and slanted his eyebrows in a
frown.

“I figured. I’ve been waiting for
you to start asking questions.”

“All I know is what I overheard.
I’m hoping you’ll let me in on this, Art.”

“Well… everyone saw how hard it
was on Jake when Barbie left him.”

Nick nodded his head and looked
down at his coffee.  

“She had a nasty temper, that
one. He still loved her, even with her wicked ways.”

“I know all about that. He had a
horrible experience with her. But why did he leave for Russia?”

“Well, let me tell you, Nick.
That beautiful wife of yours is Russian… ”

“But only half Russian,” he
interrupted. “What does that have to do with it?”

“He met a few guys on the
Internet. They told him the Russian women were beautiful. Men go over to meet
them, bring them back here to marry and hope to live happily ever after. He
found a mail-order bride who happened to be from Russia, and he’s convinced
she’d be like Mariah.”

“He believed them?” Nick stood,
his fists clenched as he paced back and forth. “Who in the hell told him that?
There are women all over the world who are gold diggers. They’d do whatever it
takes to get into our country and stay here. They’re not only from Russia,
they’re from everywhere.”

“Don’t know anything about it;
one of those men he talked to on the Internet told him his cousin had a friend
of a friend. Bad news and I told him so, but he only said there are no women up
here in the woods, and he’s sick of those he always met at a bar. He didn’t
want to end up with another one like Barbie.”

Nick’s mouth dropped into an even
deeper frown, and he regarded the situation for a moment. “I don’t like this,
Art. I hoped he only went to visit the country, to take a vacation. I had no
idea he was on his way to meet a mail-order bride. There are some horrible
stories about some of those women. Now don’t get me wrong. Some of them are
good people, but many are women who look for a free ticket over here, and end
up draining the man’s bank account.”

“Well, son, you’re lucky you have
Mariah. She’s a little sweetheart, and Jake went over in hopes of meeting a
woman just like her.”

“Yes, Mariah is an angel, but she
was born and raised here. Her mother moved to America with her parents when she
was very young. They worked hard to become citizens. Her mother and father met
when they were twenty years old. They married and Mariah was born several years
later.

“Speaking of Mariah, I’d better
return to the house and check on her. She hasn’t been feeling well. Bess should
have some breakfast ready, so I’ll be back in an hour or so. You’re more than
welcome to come in and join us if you’d like.”

“Nah, you go on in. Lillie fed me
enough food to hold me over until lunchtime. Go take care of your family. I’ll
check on the men. I can hear them talking up a storm out there. I’ll put them
to work cleaning the stalls out. That’ll shut them up. Get back to your lovely
wife.”

“Thanks,” he answered, and
straightened the clutter on his desk, before he walked back to the house.

When he entered the bedroom, he
discovered an empty bed. He heard Mariah crying softly in their bathroom. He
tapped lightly on the door and opened it slowly.

She sat on the edge of the tub,
bent over with her head between her knees.

“Honey, are you okay?”

She nodded as tears welled in her
eyes. He touched her forehead and knew immediately she had a fever. He put his
arm around her shoulders and carefully helped her stand.

“Come on, sweetheart. I’ll help
you back to bed. I want to take your temperature, and give you some Tylenol.”
He straightened the sheets before she climbed in.

He watched as the thermometer
reached one hundred-three, and his eyes widened in alarm. He gave her three
caplets of Tylenol, and placed a cold cloth on her forehead. He watched her
eyes close and she soon dozed off.  Leaving the bedroom door slightly ajar, he
hurried to the kitchen, where Bess was preparing breakfast.

“Bess, would you keep Nicky
occupied when he wakes up? Mariah isn’t well. She has a fever. I’m going to
call the doctor.”

“Don’t you worry, I’ll keep him
busy. It wouldn’t be wise to let him near her right now. Go ahead and make your
phone call.”

Bess Tanner had been Nick’s cook
and housekeeper for the past ten years. When he married Mariah, she and Bess
immediately became close friends. Nick didn’t know what they’d do without her.
He’d always treated her as though she was a member of the family, and he knew
she’s felt the same way toward them.

He hurried into the den. Dr.
Wisenberg was one of the few doctors who made house calls, if necessary. Dr.
Wisenberg assured him he would arrive in a couple of hours. He told him to keep
applying the cool face cloth to her forehead.

Nick dialed the phone number out
in the stable, and waited. After the tenth ring, Art picked up. Nick explained
the situation to him.

“You stay and take care of your
wife. I’ll handle everything out here. Give her my love.”

“Thanks Art.” He hung up and
hurried back to Mariah’s bedside, where he waited for the doctor.

Chapter
Three

“Oh
my God, Doc, are you sure?” Nick asked, as he escorted Dr. Wisenberg to the
door.

“Yes,
Nick.” The doctor placed a hand on his shoulder. “Are you okay? Maybe you
should sit down.”

“No,
no, I feel great!” he exclaimed with a grin. “We had no idea she was pregnant.
She’d always had an irregular cycle, and she wasn’t this ill when she carried
Nicky. We figured she had a bad case of the flu.”

“It
was a good thing you only gave her Tylenol. However, from this day forward
don't give her more than one or two at a time, and only if needed. I have to be
on my way. You make sure she calls for an appointment when she feels a bit
better.”

“Oh
I will, Doc. I’ll drive her in myself. Thanks for stopping by. I was awfully
worried about her.”

“Her
fever dropped. Give her plenty of liquids to care for her cold. She’ll be
better in a few days. As for her other symptoms, she should be fine in a couple
of months. You take good care of her. She’ll have her hands full with little
Nicky,” Dr. Wisenberg said with a smile. He waved when he climbed into his car.

“I
will, Doc. Thanks again.” Nick turned and rushed back into the house. He
entered through the kitchen and found Bess at the table, watching Nicky while
he drew a picture with his crayons. She looked up in concern.

“Anything
serious?” she asked quietly.

“She’ll
be okay, Bess. Nothing seven more months won’t cure.”

She
sighed in relief, and they shared a smile.

“I’m
going to check on her before I head back out.”

When
he appeared in the bedroom doorway, Mariah was sitting in bed with three
pillows behind her. He stood there for a moment and admired her. She looked up,
and her face reflected a warm glow of happiness, and a sparkle of joy in her
eyes. He entered the room and sat next to her on the bed. He placed a gentle
kiss on her temple.

“I
love you, Mariah.”

She
buried her face in his neck, breathed a kiss there, and then looked into his
eyes with a smile. “I love you, too. I’m so happy,” she whispered.

“So
am I,” he said softly, and his lips continued to explore her soft ivory skin.
He raised his head, his eyes filled with love. “Are you feeling a bit better
now?”

She
nodded with a smile, and he moved his mouth over hers, devouring its softness.
He slowly pulled himself away from her and stood up.

“I
hate to leave you, honey.”

She
yawned as he spoke, and he smiled at her.

“I’ll
be fine. I’m just very tired. Don’t worry about me. Bess is here if I need
anything.” Her grin turned into a chuckle. “At least now we know why I’ve been
so sick.”

“Yes,
and in a good way,” he told her, leaned down again and drew her face to his. He
lovingly placed a kiss on her lips. “You try to sleep a bit longer. Bess is
keeping Nicky busy out in the kitchen. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

He
stood and grabbed his Stetson from the top of the dresser where he’d placed it.
He blew her a kiss, and smiled as she breathed lightly between parted lips. He
watched her fall into a peaceful slumber. He turned to leave and gently closed
the door behind him.

Art sat and waited for a fresh
pot of coffee to finish brewing when Nick entered the office. He placed a hand
on Nick’s desk and rose to his feet with a worried expression. “How’s Mariah?
Is she going to be all right?”

Nick looked at him and wore a
broad, full-of-love smile.

Art grabbed his shoulders and
gave him a quick hug.

“What was that for?”

“I remember that look on your
face about four and a half years ago, my boy. When is she due?”

Nick threw back his head and let
out a howl of laughter. “Am I that obvious?”

Art nodded with a smile.

“Around the eighth of April; it
should be the perfect month. The snow will hopefully be melted, and she won’t
have to suffer through the summer heat the way she had when she was pregnant
with Nicky.”

Art gave him a loving punch in
the shoulder. “Good timing,” he said, then placed his hat on his head, and left
while Nick sat with a proud smile spread across his face as he raised his boots
to rest on the corner of his desktop.

Chapter
Four

One month passed and though
Mariah was still quite tired, she was beginning to feel much better. Nick
wasn’t as worried about her, and he was able to stay out later each day while
they tried to complete their preparation for the coming winter.

During the last week of
September, Bess asked for a few days off. Her sister had recently given birth
to her first child, and she wanted to drive to White Bear Lake to visit. Mariah
assured her that she was feeling quite well now, and not to worry. She and
Nicky would be fine. Bess left for White Bear Lake on Friday, and promised to
return on Sunday afternoon.

Nicky sat on the living room
floor and played with his Legos while he watched cartoons on television. Mariah
rested on the couch while she kept an eye on him. He was building a doghouse
for Lucky, their five-year-old Border Collie.