Free Where the Wild Rose Blooms by Lori Wick Page A

she ever heard, but Elaine had another thought.
    "Maybe the Lord will lead you to teach school in Boulder someday, and you can see more of Robert Langley."
    Clayton hadn't thought of it, but he smiled his appreciation at his mother. They bowed their heads to pray for the meal, but Clayton was a bit distracted. Why had the thought of teaching in Boulder made him wonder where Jackie would be living by then? He nearly shook his head. He hadn't seen her all day, and thinking of her in that way now seemed odd to him. A moment later he dismissed it; he was probably still just pondering the way she'd responded that night in the barn. Well, he'd done everything he could to make things right. It was up to her if she wanted to have anything to do with him.

    1 cant believe you have to leave tomorrow.
    Eddie and Robert were walking hand-in-hand along Clear Creek, the sun was sinking in the sky, and the sound of the rushing water caused Eddie to raise her voice slighdy. Robert heard her quite clearly, but as hard as it was for him to leave, he didn't comment. Right now he just wanted to be near the woman he loved, holding her hand and not thinking about a six-month separation.
    "Do you think the time will go by swiftly?" Eddie asked.
    "That all depends."
    "On what?"
    "On the time of day. When I'm at the bank, at my desk or even overseeing a tellers window, the hours will fly by, but in the evening when I'll wonder what you're doing and if you had a good day, the time will drag." Robert stopped then and pulled Eddie close with one hand. With his free hand he traced the line of her brows and then drew his fingers down her cheek until he had taken gentle hold of her chin.
    "I love you, Eddie, and I don't want you to forget that for one second."
    "I won't. You won't forget my love, will you?"
    "Not for an instant. And when I come again, we'll be husband
and
wife."
    With that he caught her in both arms and kissed her. There were houses along the creek, but the trunk and branches of a large tree sheltered their tender kiss of love and anxiousness, and when they broke apart to walk back to the house, Eddie's thoughts went again to the forthcoming wedding.
    "Are you certain your family won't come?"
    "Quite certain. When I return to Boulder I'll write and let them know how things worked out, but it's such a long way from Pennsylvania, and my mother is not in the best of health. She'll want us to visit as soon as we're able. I know they're looking forward to meeting you, so we'll go soon after we're married."
    "What if I'm expecting right away?"
    "I hope you will be, and if that's the case, we'll wait and the three of us will

go."
    "What if it's twins?" Eddie asked, and Robert laughed because he knew she was being outrageous.
    "In that case," he was outrageous in return, "we'll leave one of the babies with a neighbor so it will still just be the three of us."
    Now Eddie laughed as well. As they neared the house, they heard Jackie's voice in the yard. She appeared to be waiting for them, and indeed she was, hands on her waist.
    "I know you want him all to yourself, Eddie, but this is Robert's last night, and we want to visit with him too."
    "All right," Eddies hands went in the air as though in surrender. "I just had to get him away for a little while so you could do my job with dinner."
    Jackie smiled hugely. "Well, it worked. Mother roped me in as soon as I came through the kitchen."
    Eddie liked that a lot, but Robert turned on some mock sympathy. He put an arm around Jackie and walked her toward the house. His voice was full of fun when he asked, "She's very cruel to you, isn't she, Jackie?"
    "Who? Mother or Eddie?"
    "Both."
    "Yes," Jackie told him emphatically and just barely held her laugher. "They all are. I'm under such persecution."
    Robert laughed. Sammy darted from the house right then and took Roberts free hand. Eddie held back just a few steps so she could watch him walk with her sisters.
    I never thought about how he would feel