The Widow Finds Love (Mail Order Bride Series) (9 page)

An ebullient Clint burst into the house.  “Sarah!  Sarah!  Except for a few plants, I’m not seeing any stripping
.  We’re beating the worms.  With a few more days of heat and no more rain, the crop will be safe.  You did it.”

“You did all of the work,” she said.

“Well, I never would have known about it if you hadn’t told me.  I’m going off to tell our neighbors about it, so they can get started on theirs.  I hope Jud has enough poison for everyone.  Wonder where he gets it?”

First Baptist Church, Marshall…

The Reverend Wells asked his congregation if there were any announcements.  A middle aged man in overalls stood, thanked the preacher and said, “I want to thank Miz Thomas for bringing the information about cotton dusting to us and sharing it.  I had worms on my cotton and now they’re gone.  My crop wasn’t damaged much and I am thankful.  God bless you, Miz Thomas.”  There was a chorus of amens from the congregation,

The farmer sat down, and the preacher asked that Sarah stand, so the members could see her and know who she was. Reluctantly, she stood, as the entire congregation gave her a round of applause.

“I was so embarrassed,” she confessed to Suzy after church.

“Embarrassed?  You shouldn’t be embarrassed, honey.  You should be proud.  There’s no telling how much money you saved this town.  We stand to have a big crop on our farm and I imagine most everyone else will too, and it’s all thanks to you.  I am so pleased and proud to have you in our family, I could simply burst.”  She hugged Sarah tightly, and said “Thank you again.”

After the girls had gone to bed that evening, Sarah and Clint were preparing themselves for bed.  As was his habit, Clint unhooked the back of her dress, and pushed it to the floor.  Layer by layer, they undressed each other.  He stood behind her, with his arms around her and each cupping a breast.  His fingers slowly rolled the nipples around as they stiffened.  She arched her neck back into the hollow between his head and shoulder.  “That feels good.  I don’t say this often enough, but I’ve come to love you so much sometimes I can hardly stand it.  You are wonderful and I’m so grateful to have found you.”

“We don’t say it enough,” he said.  “I love you more than I would ever have thought possible.”  She turned in his arms and pressed herself against him. 

With her hands clasped in back of his head, she sought his mouth hungrily.  The touch of his lips on hers sent spirals of desire all of the way down to her core.  She pushed herself against his groin, feeling the strength of his manhood against her thigh.  “Clint, I want you to give me a baby.  I want to have your baby.  I would like for our girls to have a little brother.”

“It would be nice to have a little boy wouldn’t it?” he asked.

“Yes, it would.  Another little Clint running around.”

She pulled him down on the bed and on top of her.  His lips pressed against hers, his tongue entered the opening as she parted her lips.  She moaned, the fiery tip of his tongue touching hers , caused an involuntary upthrusting of her hips.  “Now, please give me a baby now,” she whispered.  Pushing against him, she climaxed almost immediately.  He responded by pushing himself deep within her, over and over.  She gasped with sweet agony as the waves of ecstasy throbbed throughout her body.  As he roused her passion, his own grew stronger as he hurtled through the point of no return, at the same time, taking her to a height of desire she had never felt.

Spent, they lay in each other’s arms, still moist from the vigorous lovemaking, and slowly succumbed to the numbing sleep of the satisfied lover.

He awakened sometime in the night, one hand cupping the soft skin of her breast.  His movement caused her to stir.  “Ummmm,” she purred, and squirmed to get closer, then contentedly, she fell back asleep.

She extricated herself from his arms and stood by the bed, raising her entire body as she reached for the ceiling.  Clint opened his eyes to see her naked body, stretching, silhouetted by the early light of the coming dawn.  “You are so beautiful, I just marvel that we found each other.  Come back to bed for a little while,” he said.

Smiling, she returned to the bed and his open arms.  Unlike the night before, this time, she was partly on her side, with his leg across her, she guided him inside, then slowly and gently he made love to her.  “We are good together, aren’t we,” she said. 

“Yes, we’re a perfect fit in every way.  Now, I better get going or the cows are going to be bawling their heads off,” he said.

“I’ll have breakfast ready, whenever you are,” she said.  “I’m going to let the girls sleep in this morning.

After he went outside, she dressed, went to the kitchen.  Humming, and smiling to herself, she thought,
Last night was the night.  I think he gave me a baby.  Oh God, please let it be so.

Sarah wrote a letter to her parents, describing their recent adventure with the worms. 
“It has been a really wet month, and Clint has been worried about worms.  Papa, we had a neighbor who had a field stripped.  Clint has been spending hours in the fields checking for worms.  About two weeks ago he found some signs of them on the plants.  He said he was going to try to brush them off and save as much of the crop as he could.  I told him about your dusting board.  We went into town and found some poison at the general store.  He mixed it with flour and used the duster on all of our fields.  It took a week, but they are gone!  We told all of our neighbors about it and they did the same.  This past Sunday, a farmer stood up in church and thanked me for telling them about the duster. He said the Lord sent me.  Clint said I may have saved the entire cotton crop of Harrison County.  It was you, Papa.  I saw you make it and use it.

Mama, you should see our girls.  They are growing like weeds.  Rebecca is really doing well.  She is a very beautiful little girl,  Cassie is quite pretty and is so outgoing, she is like a breath of spring.  I wish you could come visit us.  They’ve started back to work on the railroad to Marshall.  That will help and make it a much less difficult trip than Rebecca and I had.  Rebecca sends her love.  We love you both and miss you so much.  I think of you every day. (s) Your loving daughter, Sarah.

Still humming to herself, Sarah moved about the kitchen, preparing the morning meal for her family, Sarah was a picture of happiness and contentment.  The table was set and the food was ready when she heard the back door close as Clint came back in from the barn.

“You are in a good mood this morning,” he said.

“I feel good.  I have a husband I love, who loves me in return, and I have two absolutely beautiful daughters.  Our crops are going to be good and I have my fingers crossed as I hope to be with child before long,” she said.

“Last night was perfect and there’s no better time to conceive a baby than on a night like the one we had.  You really had me turned on, better I think, than I have ever been.”

“Yeah, well, I just hope you aren’t building yourself up for a disappointment,” he said.

“So, if it doesn’t work, we try again.  Half the fun of a trip is getting there, and it was fun.”

“I must be better than I thought,” Clint said.

“My darling, you couldn’t be any better, if you tried,” she said as she leaned over and kissed him.  He pulled her onto his lap, wrapped his arms around her and proceeded to kiss her soundly.  She slid her hand inside his shirt and rubbed his muscular chest.  “I just love touching you,” she said.  She moaned as he moved his hand to her breast.  As he gently squeezed the soft mound, the heat from his hand penetrated the fabric and raced through her body.

“We’d better stop this or you and the girls are going to have a cold breakfast.”  She moved to stand up, but was held tightly in his arms. Tilted her head, she pulled his head down, parted her lips and began working her mouth.  His tongue slipped into her opened mouth.  Her body trembled as her heart pounded.

“I don’t mind a cold meal if you mean what I think you mean,” he said.

“I do and did,” she said.

He moved his powerful arms beneath her legs, and stood, her arms still wrapped around his neck.  He carried her to the bedroom where he stood her up and began removing her clothes.  “Are you going to have your way with me?” she asked coyly.

“I am,” his voice hoarse with desire,

“Oh, good,” she said as she began unbuttoning his shirt and pushing it from his shoulders.  She unhooked the large belt buckle and slid his pants past his hips.  She laid back on the bed.  “I want to watch this next part,” she said.  He stepped out of his underwear, as his member sprang to attention.

“My, my,” she said.  “You are as ready as I am.”  She took him in hand and guided the stiff symbol of his manhood into the place it so obviously desired.  The ensuing act of love was both gentle and frantic with each achieving a large amount of satisfaction.  She got out of bed and began getting dressed.  “After that, you deserve a hot breakfast,” and walked out of the bedroom, calling out over her shoulder, “Would you get the girls up?  I’ll get started on their breakfast too.” 

Ten minutes later, he walked into the kitchen, carrying both girls in his arms.  “We’re ready and I am starving,” he announced.

“Good morning, girls,” Sarah said, and bent to hug and kiss each of them.  “Did you have a good sleep?”

“I did,” Rebecca said, clutching her doll in her arms..  “Lizzie did too.”

“How ‘bout you, Cassie?  Did you sleep well?”

“I did too, Mama,” Cassie said.  “I’m hungry too.”

“Well, your breakfast is ready,” she said, as she put the plates with scrambled eggs and bacon in front of each of them.  She got two biscuits from the warming oven, and with her finger, punched a hole into the side of the biscuit.  She poured honey from a jar on the table, into the holes.  “There you are girls.  Now I need to take care of your Papa.”

“I think you already did,” he said, with a laugh.

“Yes, well, you still need to eat to keep your strength up.”  She kissed his forehead and placed a heaping plate in front of him.

Six weeks later…

“You remember our night?” she asked.

“Which night are you talking about?”

“The best one,” she said.

“Oh, that night,” he said.

“I think it happened that night, she said.  “I think we’re going to have a baby.  My time hasn’t come yet, and my breasts are tender.  I haven’t been sick in the morning, but my stomach has been a bit fluttery.  I’ve been hoping and I think my wish is coming true.”

“We better get you in to the doctor and get you checked out, then,” he said.  “We need some supplies anyway, so let’s go in tomorrow or the next day.”

“It works for me, “ she said.

Two mornings later, after cleaning up the breakfast dishes, the Thomas family headed to Marshall, their first stop was Doc Stone’s office.

Old Doc Stone had been the Thomas family doctor for years.  He had attended Clint’s first wife when she became ill with pneumonia, and mourned when he was unable to help her.  Sarah had met the doctor and his wife at church, but had not seen him professionally.

“You’re not ailing, I hope,” he said after greeting them when they arrived at his office.

“No, nothing like that,” Sarah.  “I think I am with child.”

“Let me get my wife,” the doctor said.  Sarah, the doctor, and his wife, Emily sat in his private office.  “Why do you think you are expecting?” he asked.

“Usually, I’m fairly regular, but this month I’m late.  My breasts are really sensitive, too,” she said.

“Any morning sickness?” the doctor asked.

“No, a couple of times I came close.  I never was sick with Rebecca either,” she said.

“Let’s see what we have, then,” said the doctor.  “How does Clint feel about it?” he asked.

“He was strutting around like a barnyard rooster,” she said. 

After his examination was completed,” Doc Stone said, “I believe you’re right.  Since this isn’t your first, you have a pretty good idea of what you can and can’t do, so I won’t give you any lectures,  I’d like to see you at the three month point, and then the sixth and every month after that.  When you get to the ninth, then we’ll check you out each week.  Congratulations, Mrs. Thomas.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” she said, “But please, call me Sarah.”

“I understand you lost your husband in the war, and after what Clint went through in the war, and then to lose Ruth so soon after he got home, I can tell you've been good for him.  His worry lines are gone and he looks happy.  You both deserve some happiness.”

“He’s made Rebecca and me happy, and I love Cassie.  We’re really blessed, and we both wanted another baby, and are hoping for a boy.”

“Nothing we can do about that, it’s already been decided, but for what it’s worth, I hope you get your wish.”

“I just want him to be healthy,” Sarah said.

“We’ll do what we can to make it so,” said the doctor.  “If you have any problems, let me know.”

“Emily,” Sarah said, “it’s good to see you again.  I guess we’ll be seeing you on a regular basis now.”
 

“I look forward to it,” Emily said.

“As do I,” replied Sarah.  “Now, I get to tell Clint and the girls about it.”

She went out into the waiting room where her family was waiting.  Wearing a big smile, she nodded at Clint.  His face lit up like a Christmas tree.  She mouthed, “Let’s wait until tonight to tell the girls.”

“Okay, are you ready?  Then, “Thanks, Emily.  You too, Doc.”

They walked hand in hand down the wooden board sidewalk to the general store to pick up their supplies and then home.  “I knew it,” she said.  “It was that night.”