“Oh! Of course. I’m sorry.”
Weston smiled as she took a seat on the davenport, and he then took the chair opposite. He began his story in a quiet voice, and Anne found herself captivated.
“It wasn’t complicated or dramatic, unless you take into account the very work Christ did on the cross. Then that changes everything. That was dramatic and full of conflict, but because I was only five, I wasn’t able to understand the full measure of what God did for me. However, when my father spoke to me about how my sin would stay with me forever if I didn’t let God remove it, I became fearful.
“We had gone riding on a well-used path in town. Failing to concentrate once too often, I lost my seat. Unfortunately, I landed in horse droppings. I couldn’t believe how badly the smell lingered on my skin and clothing, and my father used that as an example of sin before we have forgiveness. I was so taken by it that I knew I must do something. I repented that day and asked Christ to be Lord of my life. I didn’t begin to study and take the Word seriously for several more years, but I believe with all my heart that that was the moment my name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
“Thank you for telling me,” Anne said sincerely.
“Will you return the favor, Miss Gardiner? I would love to hear your story of salvation.”
Anne was certainly glad to oblige. Her own account began with her mother.
“My mother often read the Bible in the evenings to my father and me. My father rarely commented about what was read, so whenever I had questions, I would go to my mother. I can’t remember a time that she didn’t open her Bible and have an answer for me. I was so impressed with her knowledge of Scripture that I wanted to read God’s Word for myself.
“I told her of my plan, but she shocked me by saying that Scripture was personal. I was rather stunned, but she went on to say that God’s Word is for His children and that unless I was God’s child, I shouldn’t expect to know and understand all the words. I naturally wanted to know why I wasn’t His child, and she explained that it doesn’t just happen. She said that when I was old enough to understand what sin was, then I had a choice to make.
“I told her I knew that sin was committing a wrong against God, and our conversation progressed from there. She explained to me in detail about Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. I wasn’t able to take it all in, but like you, I knew I wanted the forgiveness that came with His death.
“That’s the day that lingers in my mind. That’s the day God has used to keep me going when I lost my mother and then watched my father lose everything. I know that’s the day eternity was settled for me.”
Weston smiled as she finished, thinking about her as a child and wondering if she was always this sweet.
“Thank you for telling me. It’s always amazing to me how the Lord works in different hearts.”
Anne nodded, feeling a little embarrassed. She had more questions for this man, but right now she was too shy to ask.
“What else can I tell you?” Weston asked when Anne remained quiet.
“Oh, well, I don’t wish to be intrusive.”
“I appreciate that, but I have no qualms about sharing. If we’re going to be married, I think having things out in the open is the only way it’s going to work.”
“I’m sure you’re right. I have never considered marriage before, and I’m not quite sure how to go about it.”
“Even if you were sure, our situation is unusual. We might have to do things differently.”
“In light of that very thing, Mr Weston,” Anne volunteered as her tongue began to relax, “I guess I would like to ask you why you offered. Pastor told me what you said, but perhaps I could hear it from you.”
“Certainly. I’m very aware of how the situation between us has changed your life. I’ve been able to go about my business, but you’ve suffered greatly for my taking you to Brown Manor. The thing I need to make more than clear to you, Miss Gardiner, is that no matter how much you might have suffered, if you had not been a woman that my own pastor could recommend as a wife, I would not have offered for your hand.
“I have things that I want to share with the woman who becomes my wife—many things—but most importantly her faith in Christ and her commitment to Him. Nothing would have induced me to propose had your faith not been established. I would have still regretted my course of action, but I would not have tried to repair it, at least not in this way. The second thing I wish you to know is that I only began with those thoughts. Since then I’ve observed you under various circumstances, and I can see for myself what a warm, caring person you are. That we would start our marriage on unfamiliar ground is not lost on me, but we both would care about each other, and that seems to be more important.”
“But do you not wish to marry for love, Mr Weston?” Anne couldn’t help but ask. “Is there not a woman who has claimed your affections?”
“I was engaged more than a year ago, but that’s over.”
“Is the woman’s name Henrietta?” Anne asked on a sudden memory.
“Yes, it is. How did you know?” Weston’s face showed all the surprise he felt.
“Someone visited the last day I cleaned at Brown Manor, and you said that name.”
“I’d forgotten about that. Yes, that was Henrietta.”
“Things didn’t work out to restore the relationship that day?” Anne asked, even knowing it was obvious.
“No. Henrietta had broken our engagement over someone else. When things didn’t work out with that man and I didn’t immediately welcome her back, I saw another side of her. Not until that moment did we talk—as we should have before—about salvation. Henrietta hadn’t a clue as to what I was talking about. I assumed she was saved because we grew up in the same church and we both read the Bible and often discussed it, but I completely misread things. Even my mother was fooled. The time away had changed Henrietta, and when I tried to speak to her of spiritual things, I saw how wrong I had been.”
Anne nodded, sure she understood. He’d been disappointed in love and naturally didn’t wish to repeat that experience. By taking a wife he wasn’t emotionally involved with, there was no risk.
“May I ask you a question?” Weston ventured.
“Certainly.”
“If my suit is acceptable to you, will you wish me to speak with your father?”
Anne smiled at the question, thinking him most kind.
“In truth, Mr Weston, I think it might complicate matters.”
“It’s best that he’s completely forgotten me?” Weston guessed.
“As a matter of fact, he hasn’t,” Anne surprised him by saying. “He mentioned you by name this very week.”
Weston stared at her.
“Is that normal?”
“Not in the least. I was rather taken aback.”
“So you spoke of the wedding?”
“No, he wanted to know if my husband—he even called you Mr Weston—liked the dress I was wearing at the time. He’d no more asked when his mind drifted elsewhere, but I was still very surprised.”
“I can see how you would be, but if I may be so bold as to suggest that your father might see something that you do not.”
“What would that be?”
“That I might take better care of you, that my situation might lend itself to better care for his daughter than he is able to give.”
Anne had to process this for a moment, and when she did, only one question came to mind.
“Do you believe, Mr Weston, that it’s right for me to marry you to save my name or make my life comfortable?”
“That’s only where we start, Anne,” he said, using her name for the first time, his tone warm. “The possibilities of where we go from there are nearly limitless.”
Anne had not expected this and found she could say nothing. Clear thoughts refused to form in her head, but somewhere in a small recess of her mind she could picture herself married to this man.
Brown Manor
Weston b
egan his letter Monday morning.
Dear Mother,
I have asked and the lady has answered. The banns will be read this Sunday, and then a quiet ceremony will take place in the manse on Monday, 12 August.
Thank you for your prayers. We will visit after we’ve taken a few weeks to settle in, probably when the August heat has cooled. I am looking forward to seeing you and introducing you to Anne.
Lovingly,
Robert
Weston read the letter over before folding it for the post. He was quite certain that his levelheaded mother would not have sentiments about attending the ceremony. She would be more concerned with the life they were going to lead. A visit to London in late August or early September would be a nice outing for Anne, as well as provide an opportunity for his mother to meet his bride.
It was true that Weston himself was being rather levelheaded about the whole matter, something he found easy to do whenever he was not in Anne’s presence. When that lady was about, he wasn’t quite so calm.
Dismissing it as a normal reaction in light of their upcoming wedding, Weston gave it little thought. He readied the letter for Mansfield and then decided to go for a ride.
A special license was acquired the very week Weston asked Anne to marry him, which meant that the banns had to be read in church only one Sunday. Pastor Hurst took care of this the moment the service ended.
Friends of the future groom, and especially the bride, were shocked by this announcement—there had been no hint—but that swiftly gave way to their pleasure.
Pastor Hurst had suspected as much. For this reason he had left the reading until the end of the hour, knowing how exciting and distracting the news would be.
As would be expected, Anne and Weston, who were sitting quietly in the rear, were thronged. Hugs and well-wishes abounded, all warm and genuine. Some of Anne’s closer friends, such as Lydia, asked to see her soon, but Anne was unable to give an answer.
“When you can.” Lydia left her with those words, and in time Anne found herself alone with her intended.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes, but it’s all so sudden. I hope you weren’t embarrassed.”
Weston’s brows rose. “To be marrying the lady who dwells in the heart of every member of this church? I don’t know why I would be.”
Anne looked at him in surprise.
“Is that really how it seems to you?”
“Certainly. Name one family that doesn’t check on you and mother over you.”
The words could have been said in jealousy or as an accusation, but there was none of that. Anne saw that Mr Weston’s eyes were smiling and he looked very pleased.
“Maybe I’m not a charity case after all,” she said quietly, knowing that her pride was smarting a bit.
“Is that the way I’ve made you feel?”
“No, but I just can’t help but wonder—” Anne stopped, not certain she wanted to voice the words.
“You can tell me.”
Anne might have done just that, but Judith and Pastor Hurst were coming back inside the church—they had been seeing folks off—and Anne decided to keep her mouth closed on the subject.
“I’d best be going,” she said. “I still have things to do.”
“I’ll see you out,” Weston offered before both of them bid the Hursts goodbye.
“Thank you.”
“I do wish I could give you a ride home,” Weston said as they stepped into the warmth outdoors.
“Thank you again, but I’ll be fine.”
“I’ll come for you in the morning.”
Anne looked up at him.
“Since we’ll be married shortly after, I didn’t think it would matter.”
“I’m sure you’re right.”
She had agreed, but Weston heard the hesitancy in her voice.
“Would you rather I didn’t?”
“I was just thinking about the fact that it might do me good to walk one more time.”
Weston hated the very thought, but even more than his own feelings right now, he wanted to bow to her wishes.
“In that case, I’ll meet you here.”
“You don’t mind?”
“The fact that you won’t have to walk after tomorrow makes it tolerable.”
Anne’s head tipped to one side.
“Why does that bother you?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted honestly. “It’s not so bad when you’re only carrying your Bible to church, but when you’re laden down with things from town and have to make that long trek back to Levens Crossing, it doesn’t sit well with me.”
“Thank you,” she simply said.
“For what?”
“For being kind.”
Weston did little more than bow in acknowledgment to this, but his heart was thinking, Being kind to you, Anne Gardiner, might be the easiest thing I’ve ever done.
The two parted, both a little in awe over the events of the last week. They both trusted their own ears and eyes, as well as the words of their pastor, but that didn’t alter the fact that life would soon change forever.
Thornton Hall
“Are you trying to put me into labor?” Marianne teased Jennings when he arrived home with the news.
“It’s true, Mari. They’re to be married at the manse tomorrow morning.”
Marianne’s mouth swung open.
“But how? When?”
“I didn’t get the minute details, but it seems that Weston approached the Hursts about offering for Anne, and Pastor supported the idea. The very day she came to visit here and went on to the manse was the day the Hursts spoke to her. At some point Weston asked and Anne accepted.”
“Oh, my,” Marianne managed before the youngest of the children found them, repeating Jennings’ news all over again.
“What shall I wear to the wedding?” Penny asked after the story spilled out.
“We’re not going, dear,” her guardian told her, and she looked to Jennings in surprise.
“But we love Anne,” she argued.
“Yes, we do, but the ceremony is private.”
“Who will be there?”
“I believe only Pastor and Mrs Hurst.”
The little girl looked confused and crestfallen over this.
“We’ll have them to dinner after the baby comes, Penny,” Marianne suggested. “You can wear a special dress then.”
The little girl was forced to be content with that, Marianne reassuring her with a few more words, but she was glad when Penny said she wanted to check on lunch, and Marianne could be alone with her husband again.
“How did Anne seem?”
“Overwhelmed and shy, but also somewhat pleased.”
The words did not comfort Marianne overly much. Part of her heart understood what a wonderful step this was for Anne—she would be cared for—but marriage was a serious issue, a permanent one. Would she and Mr Weston be happy together?
Marianne’s gaze dropped to her well-expanded waist. Were she in any other condition she would have gone to Anne on the spot. She was left with only one option: to pray and trust God to take care of her, something she would need to work at for the better part of the day.
Levens Crossing
“I couldn’t wait” were Lydia’s words when Anne opened the door to find her there. Church had been over for many hours, but Anne was still on Lydia’s mind.
“Come in, Lydia,” Anne invited with a smile, not all that surprised to see her.
“Are we alone?”
“Yes. Father is gallivanting. He actually remembered Mr Weston this week, and it’s made him a bit more agitated. He’s glad I’m finally going to live with him.”
Lydia looked surprised by this and then noticed the trunk in the living room.
“Tell me you didn’t carry this down on your own.”
“No,” Anne said on a laugh, “Father did. He just didn’t wait for me to finish. I’ve been dashing up and down the stairs all day.”
Lydia laughed at the idea and then offered to help. The women visited as they folded Anne’s wardrobe. Anne told her how it all came about and the reason they were moving swiftly.
“And you’re all right with this?”
“Since neither one of us is marrying for love, yes. I wouldn’t be in a hurry except that Mr Weston is right. My reputation will be rescued all the sooner if we don’t tarry.”
“Are you certain you know enough about one another?”
“We actually know a good deal about each other. For four days straight we met at the manse and spoke. It didn’t start out that way. I thought we would meet one time and one of us would see we were wrong, but we had more questions and kept coming back to continue our dialog. When we met the fourth day, he asked and I accepted.”
“And you’re sure?”
“Yes. We’ve always known that a man of some means would be the answer to most of Father’s and my problems, Liddy. I just didn’t know a believer who would have me. Now Mr Weston has come along. He doesn’t seem the least put out that we’re not in love, so I’m leading with my head and not my heart. I’m going through with this.”
Once the packing was complete, Lydia left to tell her sister-in-law just what Anne had said. She went directly to Thornton Hall, realizing that Jennings would have taken the word home and Marianne would be wondering.
Knowing that the judgment of the people involved could be trusted, she prayed and asked God to bless this marriage and everyone who would be affected.
Anne left her home with plenty of time to spare on Monday morning. She rather felt as if she was giving something up this day. She knew she was gaining much, but not until just then did she realize how much she cherished her freedom to walk where she pleased. Oh, there were times when it was arduous, but most of the time she enjoyed it. It gave her time to think and pray.
Today she did a lot of both. Nearly strolling on the road to the church, Anne prayed especially for her father. He always fared very well when she was away, but this time she was not coming back.
Please take care of him, heavenly Father. He needs You so. Help him to be well and somehow mindful of You. Help him not to be plagued with fears. Help him to find comfort in You.