Free A Husband for Margaret by Ruth Ann Nordin

to his
seat.
    “ It’s easy,” Doug
said.
    She rolled her eyes. “Sure,
it is.” If you’ve done it a bunch of times
already. “You’ll have to show me later.”
Her own growling stomach notified her that she wasn’t in the mood
to go through a step-by-step instruction on getting the tray in
place. She would wait. She turned to the pitcher on the work table
and filled the glasses with water. “I’ll make tea punch later
today. Water is boring.”
    “ Tea punch?” Bob’s eyes lit
up. “We haven’t had that since Ma died. Our other ‘ma’, I
mean.”
    She turned her gaze to him and smiled.
“I’m sure she did a fine job of making it.”
    Joseph entered the kitchen, carrying
Charles with him. “Well, he didn’t want to use the privy or chamber
pot. I’m afraid you’re stuck with diapering another one. Got enough
cloths ready?”
    The question wasn’t how many clean
cloths she had on hand; it was if she could get them to stay on
right. She glanced at Doug who had worked through the process with
Ben. As long as he continued to help, she could manage it. Not
feeling as brave as she sounded, she replied, “I’ll be
fine.”
    He set Charles in the chair next to
Doug and went over to kiss her. “You look wonderful this
morning.”
    The way he smiled at her made the heat
rise in her cheeks. Even if he didn’t say it, she knew the message
in his eyes—he couldn’t wait for night to come. Clearing her
throat, she decided that she couldn’t keep looking at him and sound
calm. The boys were just children, after all, and they didn’t need
to know how his touch and kiss affected her.
    “ Breakfast is ready,” she
said.
    She cleared her throat again. So that
wasn’t as smooth as she’d planned. She was doing just fine until he
entered the room. Now she was a bundle of nerves. And she couldn’t
wait until they were alone either. But now it was day and time to
focus on the tasks at hand.
    “ It looks great,” Joseph
replied.
    “ Can we eat now? I’m going
to die if I don’t get some food!” Bob groaned and clutched his
stomach again.
    “ You are not going to die.”
Joseph turned to the work table to collect the glasses and helped
her set out their drinks.
    “ Ma’s going to make tea
punch today!” Doug said as he took the cup of water Margaret handed
him.
    “ That will be a treat,”
Joseph said. “We haven’t had that in a long time. I tried to make
it once, but I couldn’t remember the right amount of rich sweet
cream to use.”
    “ A half pint if you use a
pint and a half of tea,” Margaret replied.
    “ We’re sure glad you’re
here,” Bob piped up. “He can’t make tea punch or cook
right.”
    “ You survived, didn’t you?”
Joseph asked, grinning despite his reproving tone.
    “ Barely,” Bob
teased.
    Margaret sat down and waited for Joseph
to sit and say grace before she allowed the boys to start passing
the plates around, careful that Ben and Charles didn’t grab them.
She didn’t know how much they would eat so she let Joseph select
their portions.
    “ I’m looking forward to
tomorrow when I start at the paper,” Joseph told her from across
the table as he cut into his eggs.
    “ Are you staying here today,
Pa?” Doug asked.
    “ No. I have to deliver
supplies for the mercantile.” He took a bite of his food and
swallowed before telling her, “I agree with Bob. The food is much
better now that you’re cooking it.”
    “ Thank you,” Margaret
replied, glad he approved.
    “ I like it too!” Bob and
Doug added.
    “ And thank you,” she told
them before she handed Ben a pancake which he ripped apart with his
hands. Startled, she pulled his hands down from his face so he
didn’t stuff his mouth.
    Joseph chuckled. “I should have sat
next to him.”
    “ Well, I have to learn how
to do this sooner or later,” she said as she removed all the pieces
he’d made and gave him one that was safe. “There. He won’t choke on
that.”
    “ He’s such a baby,”