“It’s nearly dark out,” she told him, thinking he hadn’t noticed.
“Is it?” he teased her, and Maddie knew he was up to something.
Nevertheless, she went along, going with him out the door and holding his hand as they walked toward the millpond. It was a moonless night, and Maddie thought that was too bad. She had seen moonlight on the millpond many times and always found it beautiful.
Maddie was on the verge of mentioning to Jace how she wished there was a moon when he took her off the road and into the trees.
“Watch your head,” he whispered as they neared a branch, and Maddie ducked just in time.
“What are we doing?” she whispered as well.
“You’ll see,” he told her, still pulling her by the hand and heading toward the pond. “Okay,” he said, having come to a small clearing at the water’s edge, “take off your clothes.”
Jace was met with silence. He knew Maddie was still there— he could feel her hand—but not a sound came from her, not even breathing.
“Maddie?”
“What?”
“Did you hear me?”
“Yes, and you have clearly taken leave of your senses, Jace Randall.”
“I’m going to teach you to swim,” he said softly, and found his hand gripped tightly with both of hers.
“You what?” Her voice rose in panic.
“Shh,” Jace found her mouth and covered it, already starting to laugh. “We don’t want to be heard.”
“I can’t swim, Jace,” she told him as she pushed the hand away. “This is not going to work.”
“Yes, it is. I won’t let anything happen to you. Now get undressed.”
Jace let go of her then, and she heard the rustle of his clothing.
“Are you moving?” Jace asked, knowing she only stood there.
“We’re not actually going to do this, are we?”
“Yes. Now strip down, Madalyn.”
Maddie put her hands out and encountered Jace’s bare flesh. She knew at that point that she wasn’t going to get out of this. Had it been the least bit light, she would have walked home on her own, but she couldn’t see a thing in front of her.
“How am I going to find everything again?” she asked with some heat, beginning to work the pins on her dress.
“Just make a pile. It will all be there when we get back.”
Jace heard her loud sigh and smiled to himself. It sounded as though she was getting the job done, but he gave her a few more seconds.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
Jace put his hand out and found cloth.
“Maddie, what is this?”
“My shift, and I’m not taking it off.”
“How long is it?”
“It stops just above my knees.
“That’ll probably work. Are your shoes and stockings off?”
“Yes.”
“Here’s my hand.” Jace found hers and began to lead her into the water. They were almost there when Maddie gasped.
“What is it?”
“You’re trying to kill me,” she accused. “You’ve changed your mind about our marriage and you want me dead.”
Jace’s entire frame shook as he found her shoulder so he could laugh into it.
“Your laughter doesn’t fool me,” Maddie said, fighting some giggles of her own. “You want out of this marriage, and this is how you figure to do it.”
“If anyone is going to be the death of someone, Maddie, it’s going to be you,” Jace told her, still trying to stop laughing. “Come on now.”
The water was unbelievably cold. Maddie gasped a few times, but Jace only told her to hush.
“Okay,” he said close to her ear, the water to their waists. “It drops off here just a bit, but we’re not going out far enough to have it over your head. Okay?”
“Okay,” she shivered against him, waiting for her body to acclimate to the water temperature.
Coaxing her deeper into the water, Jace began the lesson. Through muffled laughter and more accusations from Maddie, Jace taught her to stay afloat. She even managed to stay above water on her own for a ways, his hand never leaving her side. They worked on it until Maddie’s teeth chattered so loudly Jace knew it was time to conclude the lesson.
Back at the house, Jace helped his shivering wife into a dry nightgown and bundled her with quilts in front of the parlor fireplace. He put on dry clothes of his own and wrapped himself around her for added warmth. Maddie stared into the flames until she felt Jace’s gaze on her.
“You were wonderful,” he said when she looked at him, the firelight bouncing off her face.
“It was so cold.”
“But next time you’ll know a little more.”
“Next time?” Maddie said, brows raised, but Jace just grinned at her. “Honestly, Jace, I thought a few times there that I was going to drown. You too.”
“We won’t let that happen,” Jace said quietly, pulling her damp head to his shoulder. “I’m not sure if either one of us is ready to die.”
Maddie would have sat up and looked at him, but Jace pushed her head down.
“Just get warm, Maddie,” he whispered. “And know that I’m proud of you.”
Maddie wanted to ask what he’d meant, but something in his voice stopped her. She knew he would not get angry, but she did suspect that no matter what she asked right now, Jace would not have an answer this time.
Epilogue
Maddie was beginning to think that Jace would never get home for dinner. It had been ready for some time, and she’d been pacing the kitchen floor for what felt like an hour. This had not been one of Clara’s days off, but Maddie had put dinner together for her and told her to go home.
Clara had looked at her oddly but gone out the door, not overly fazed. And now Maddie waited alone. She checked the food she was keeping warm. She tasted the tea and even some of the potatoes, but still Jace didn’t come. She stood in front of the window as long as she could stand it and then paced to another window to peer out of that one.
After what seemed like ages, she spotted him. He was coming from town, and she knew he would have to stable the horses and put the wagon away. She nearly went outside to meet him but then stopped, wanting him to be indoors for this special announcement.
“Hi,” Maddie said with a smile when the door opened.
“Sorry I’m late,” Jace said in return, giving her a kiss. “Doyle wanted to talk my ear off.”
“How is he?” Maddie asked, catching the breathlessness in her voice.
“Fine. Cathy asked me to dinner, but I told her you were waiting. I think she’s planning to visit you later this afternoon. She asked how you were.”
They were at the table now, Maddie having brought out the warm dishes. Jace began to fill his plate, but Maddie only stared at him.
“Are you all right?” he asked when he caught her.
“I’m pregnant,” Maddie said, unable to wait another moment.
“Oh, Maddie.” Jace was instantly on his feet, taking her into his arms. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I looked at the calendar and thought about my soreness right now, and I’m sure of it. Sometime last month, I think.”
Jace kissed her ever so gently and then wrapped his arms tightly around her, trying to absorb her into his very being. He stood and rocked her in his arms for a long time.
He didn’t want Maddie to know just then. He still had much thinking to do, but the enormousness of his wife’s news was hitting him very hard. A new life. A small person completely dependent on them for everything. And what did they know? Jace couldn’t think of a thing at the moment.
He wouldn’t mention to Maddie just yet what had been going on in his heart for days. He would wait and take good care of her for this time, but soon, before the baby was even born, he knew he needed to make his own trip to see Mr. Muldoon.
Glossary
I learned many things about life in the late 1830s. Here are jus
t a few…
buttery: pronounced but’ry, it’s a room where dairy goods are worked into various products, cheese and butter for example.
dinner: the noon meal, always a full-blown affair.
flume: a long wooden box that carries water from the millpond to the waterwheels below a mill.
green: also called the center or common, it’s the middle of town—a grass area around which homes and shops sit in a square or rectangle. I know of one in Connecticut that’s a mile long.
hard cider: fermented apple juice.
meetinghouse: a building for public assembly, including the church on a Sunday.
millpond: the pond of water that feeds the mill and is fed by spring thaw, or in the case of Tucker Mills, by a huge river that doesn’t run dry in summer.
millrace: the canal where the water from the pond enters the flume.
parlor or sitting room: where people sat in the evening, entertained visitors, and unless the house was very large, ate their meals. The table in the kitchen was mostly for work and not for eating.
pew rental: the way the pastor was paid in some meetinghouses.
pins: straight pins were often used to hold dresses on. Buttonholes were a lot of work, and women avoided making them.
tea: also called “snack”—this was the evening meal, which used leftovers from dinner.
Dear
Reader,
Some of the roads people
go down before coming to faith
are longer than others. This has
been one of those roads. Reflected
in Jace’s and Maddie’s search for
meaning is the search that many of
the people you and I touch daily
are facing. I invite you to read the
next book in the series. I hope
you’ll enjoy the next phase in
Jace’s and Maddie’s lives.
Books by Lori Wick
A Place Called Home Series
A Place Called Home
A Song for Silas
The Long Road Home
A Gathering of Memories
The Californians
Whatever Tomorrow Brings
As Time Goes By
Sean Donovan
Donovan’s Daughter
Kensington Chronicles
The Hawk and the Jewel
Wings of the Morning
Who Brings Forth the Wind
The Knight and the Dove
Rocky Mountain Memories
Where the Wild Rose Blooms
Whispers of Moonlight
To Know Her by Name
Promise Me Tomorrow
The Yellow Rose Trilogy
Every Little Thing About You
A Texas Sky
City Girl
English Garden Series
The Proposal
The Rescue
The Visitor
The Pursuit
The Tucker Mills Trilogy
Moonlight on the Millpond
Other Fiction
Sophie’s Heart
Beyond the Picket Fence (Short Stories)
Pretense
The Princess
Bamboo & Lace
Every Storm
Lori Wick, Moonlight on the Millpond
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