The Gift of a Child (16 page)

He brushed off those who tried to engage him in conversation and prayed for a strategy to forestall the Britten woman’s influence on the judge. Maybe he, too, could speak to the court. He could talk about Rose’s cooking, her attention to the boy’s manners and dress, the way the two played together and took walks and... He kicked the unyielding trunk of an oak. He was no orator. But surely everyone in town could see how Rose loved the boy and how he, in turn, doted upon her. The very idea of anyone...
anyone
hurting Rose in such a callous, self-righteous manner made his blood boil. But what was he to do?
Please God, if You’re listening, find me a way to help Rose and Alf.

He straggled in behind the last few folks returning to the courtroom and slumped down next to Lily. “How are you?” he asked.

“Oh, Seth, I’m so afraid. This is not looking good. I’ve overheard several here in the courtroom seriously questioning Rose’s unmarried state. During the recess I went to Rose. She’s terrified.”

“All rise.”

To Seth’s ear, no words had ever sounded so much like the trumpet of doom. Before resuming his seat, the judge paused and beckoned to Alf. “Come here, boy.”

Alf looked inquiringly at Rose, who gave a slight nod. Embarrassed by the crowd, Alf approached the judge with his head bowed. The man took hold of his arm and knelt beside him. Whatever Cornett was saying or asking of Alf was inaudible. The spectators watched as the boy nodded his head a couple of times and then whispered something into the judge’s ear. Then the judge stood and shooed Alf back to his seat. Seth would give a great deal to know what had transpired in that brief conversation.

Cornett returned to the bench and with a sigh began his pronouncement. “Rearing children is a sacred obligation bestowed by God. Therefore, it behooves parents to exercise discipline, patience, perseverance and love to nurture in a child all those gifts and talents that God has given him or her. Sometimes that can be an onerous and frustrating parental obligation. In a case where two parents are involved, perhaps one can exercise love when the other has reached the end of the tether. Mrs. Britten’s objections are ones I cannot overlook. On the other hand, evidence suggests that Miss Kellogg is devoted to the boy Alf and, thus far, has taken seriously her parental responsibility. Now the court would have no difficulty adjudicating this matter if Miss Kellogg, in fact, had a husband, but—

The powers of heaven could not have kept Seth in his seat. “Go no further, Your Honor. What if Miss Kellogg were married? Would that make a difference?”

“You are out of order, young man. Besides, your question is merely hypothetical.”

“Rose,” Seth shouted as he hurried across the room, “Rose, will you marry me?” The onlookers gasped and then chattered excitedly among themselves.

Oblivious to the hubbub Seth’s proposal had generated, Rose stood and slowly turned to face him, her fair skin mottled with red. “Seth, oh, Seth, don’t do this.” She shook her head in sadness.

He knelt in the aisle by her chair and took her hands in his. “Please, Rose. Be my wife. Let me be a father to Alf.”

“I can’t let you sacrifice yourself in this manner.”

“Sett?” Alf wedged his way between them. “You marry Rose and then you’ll be my papa, my very own papa!”

Seth caught Rose’s eye. “Be very careful now, my dear. We can make this work. It’s God’s answer to us, to Alf.”

In a moment customarily filled with joy, Rose hesitated for long seconds before raising their clasped hands to her lips and choking out her answer. “Yes.”

The judge banged his gavel. “Order in the court, order in the court.” Seth took Alf on his lap and settled next to Rose. “This is highly unusual.” Cornett glared at Seth. “I will not have you make a mockery of this court with your spontaneous outburst.”

Seth set Alf aside and stood. “It is not my intention to make a mockery, Your Honor. Rose and I have been good friends for many months, and to some degree, we have participated together in the care of Alf, whom we both love dearly.” He faced Rose. “I would be honored to share my life with this woman and her son, if it please this court.”

The judge took Seth’s measure for what seemed several minutes, then he said, “Sit down, sir.” He turned his gaze to the boy. “Alf, would you come forward now, please.”

Alf again wandered over to the judge, who lifted him into his lap. “You told me your Rose is a good mother, is that right?”

Alf nodded vigorously.

“Remember when I asked you if you would like a father, too? What did you say?”

“I know, I know. I said Sett!”

“You certainly did, son.” The judge picked up his gavel and said, “In the matter of Miss Rose Kellogg’s petition for adoption of this young man, petition granted.” Then he banged his gavel and the courtroom exploded.

Instead of entering his chambers, The Honorable Titus Cornett descended from the bench and approached Seth, clapped an arm on his shoulder and looked him in the eye. “Do right by these two.”

“I will,” Seth replied, suddenly humbled by the manner in which God had answered his prayer. Before he could say anything further, Alf jumped into his arms. “Papa, Papa, Papa. I can call you Papa.”

Rose had not moved, but stood studying the two of them. “Oh, Seth, what have we done?”

As the courtroom cleared, Seth could say nothing, drained of words and emotionally spent. He was a reasonable man who stewed over decisions, certainly not one prone to spontaneous outbursts such as his proposal. Yet looking at Alf’s smile, how could he have done otherwise? Rose remained motionless, her expression unreadable.

Their marriage, while solving the immediate problem of Alf’s adoption, would be unconventional, to put it mildly. Without Alf, would a wonderful woman like Rose ever have considered him? And there was always the danger that the more he invested of himself in these two, the greater his risk of getting hurt. Rarely had he allowed himself to consider marriage, but if it was to happen, no woman other than Rose had the potential to make him happy.

“Seth, you rascal, you!” His brother approached and gave him a bear hug. Seth managed a smile. What was done was done, and he’d make the best of it.

Amid their families’ questions and congratulations, Seth and Rose had no opportunity to speak to one another. Ezra looked mildly concerned, Lily cradled her sister’s face and nodded her approval, Lavinia stood to one side, not so much shocked as smug, and Sophie had thrust her arm through Seth’s with a “Good for you, brother.” Mixed reactions. What else could he expect, particularly when he, too, was experiencing a storm of contradictory feelings?

Pastor Dooley sidled up to him. “Seth, might I have a word with you?” The minister drew him aside. “That was a brave and compassionate thing you did, son. Yet I am concerned that yours was an intemperate decision. I would be reluctant to marry you and Rose unless I am convinced this is what you both want and that you will commit to a godly partnership as man and wife.”

“I am a man of my word, sir. I believe God has led me to this moment, and while it may not have come about in the usual manner, my proposal was heartfelt. I shall do my best to provide for Rose and Alf and to create a wholesome Christian family.”

“Good man. Before we proceed with the wedding, I will need to obtain those same assurances from Rose.”

“I understand.”

Seth stood apart, watching as the pastor sought out Rose and led her over to a window where they stood talking. Rose listened to what the minister was saying to her, all the time with her head bent and her fingers working the fabric of her skirt. She mumbled something and nodded her head twice. Seth could stand it no longer. He strode across the room and joined them, searching Rose’s face for a clue. Did she have serious doubts?

“Seth, Rose has pledged herself to a marriage distinguished by mutual affection and respect. One with Christ at its center,” said the pastor.

Seth let out a sigh of relief. He took Rose’s hands in his. “This marriage cannot be only about Alf. Rose, you are a fine woman who deserves to be treated with decency and affection. We have a friendship. That should serve us well. I’m ready to go forth if you are.”

Although the depths of her blue eyes betrayed some reservation, her words rang firm and resolute. “I would be honored to be your wife.”

* * *

So it was that only two days later in the afternoon following the regular Sunday church service, Rose waited in the parsonage while Aunt Lavinia, Bess and Lily clustered around her oohing and aahing. In one day, Lily had made over her own wedding gown, adding gussets of lace and lined pleats, to be more flattering to Rose. Studying herself in the mirror, Rose had little reaction. She had long ago ceased imagining herself as a bride and never as a loveless one. What was she was undertaking? A marriage of convenience? Certainly there had been no protestations of undying love. This was an arrangement, pure and simple. She should never have agreed to Seth’s proposal. How could she ask him to sacrifice himself in such a manner? Yet, how could she not? She and Seth were united in their love of Alf, but was that sufficient grounds for marriage? She would do anything to avoid Alf’s being turned over to the likes of a couple such as the Brittens, to a home where his lively, loving spirit might be repressed. Seth, too, wanted to protect the boy from such an eventuality.

Lily put the final touches on Rose’s hair and stood back to admire the effect. “You are beautiful, sister.”

“I’ve peeked at the groom,” Bess said. “He is looking quite handsome.”

Nausea threatened to overcome Rose.

Lavinia approached and took up Rose’s hand. “But it’s Alf who wins the day. He is beside himself with excitement. Be happy for him.”

“I am. I truly am.” In that moment, a look of recognition passed between the two women as if Aunt Lavinia was conveying her understanding of why Rose had agreed to marry Seth. She, too, had married for reasons other than love. Seth was a good man, a caring friend and would undoubtedly be a faithful husband. Was Rose selfish to wish for more? For romance? Passion? Yet the truth was that she was guilty of using Seth in order to ensure she could keep Alf, just as Seth, too, was protecting the boy.

The time came to walk to the church. As she studied the cross atop the steeple, she nearly lost the will to put one foot in front of the other. The most important question of all tore at her conscience: Were she and Seth defying God’s plan in marrying for any reason other than love?

Her father met her at the church door. Lavinia, Lily and Bess scurried inside to gather with Seth’s father, Caleb, Sophie and Charlie for the small family wedding. Mattie and Alf, who stood proudly at the back in their functions as flower girl and ring bearer, jumped up and down when they spotted Rose. “Mama, you’re my mama and you’re even better than a princess!”

The organist began playing “Blessed Be the Tie That Binds,” a hymn dear to Lily and Caleb and especially fitting for the occasion. The children started down the aisle. Rose had not yet been able to look at Seth, nor to entertain the joy that the sacrament demanded. Ezra tucked her arm through his. “Remember what your mama always said, Rose. I truly believe in this case she is right. All really will be well.”

Then he began slowly walking her toward Pastor Dooley and her groom. It was only then that she finally looked at her husband-to-be. He stood tall, his broad shoulders filling out a new suit coat and his sun-bronzed hair curling just below the collar. But it was his eyes that arrested her. In them she read only warmth. And when he smiled at her as he took her hand, she melted.
If only...
In that moment, Rose knew Seth was and always had been more than a friend. No one else had treated her so kindly or made her heart race with a rare kind of excitement.

She could hardly speak her vows for the shock of her sudden realization. She was in love with this dear man. But how could she ever tell him? He had long proclaimed his desire to remain a bachelor. Now he was simply accommodating Alf. That was all. It would be up to her to govern her emotions and let him take the lead in determining the nature of their marriage.

As if in a trance, she went through the motions of receiving her ring, exchanging vows and praying. Only Seth’s steadying hand kept her from being overcome both by her new insight and by the sacredness of their promises to one another.

Too soon, the pastor’s voice called her into the present. “I now pronounce Rose and Seth, man and wife. Those whom God hath joined together let no man put asunder.” Seth offered her his arm. A wife. She was a wife. And, thanks to the court, a mother. But none of it had happened as she had once dreamed it. “And now, Seth, you may kiss your bride.”

Rose blushed to the roots of her hair. She had not foreseen this awkward moment. How could this happen? And in front of everyone? Seth studied her face, then caressed her shoulders, drawing her near. “Mrs. Montgomery,” he whispered and then she felt his lips on hers and a traitorous tingle zinged from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.

“Seth,” she breathed as the kiss ended. “Oh, my.”

“Kissing. Papa’s kissing! Look, Mattie. He’s kissing Mama!”

Alf’s outburst shattered any decorum on the part of the witnesses, and one by one, the people she loved came forward to press their congratulations on the two of them. The last to approach her was Andrew. The grizzled old man took her hands in his, holding them tightly. With glazed eyes, Seth’s father spoke softly for her ears only. “I love my son, Rose. He has little thought for himself, only for others. It has been thus since he was a boy forced to take on the care of his brother and sister. He will be good to Alf and to you.” He paused, swallowing several times. “Someday he will admit to you what we all know already. My son loves you with all his being. Be patient, my dear.”

Thunderstruck, Rose was at a loss for words. Could it be? Was Seth as fearful of rejection as she? She wanted to believe Andrew, but did she dare?

Seth, carrying Alf, came to her and picked up her hand. “Shall we go? The banquet awaits at Aunt Lavinia’s and this little fella is hungry.”