Chapter Three
Tom was right. She did talk all day, but she didn’t seem to expect more than nods or head shakes from him.
A few times he turned around and lifted an eyebrow as if to tell her she was in need of a lunatic asylum, but she seemed to understand that too.
In fact, the first time he did it, she poked him with her oar.
She once again set up their bedrolls that night, and she placed them far closer than he ever had.
When he realized she was only putting down one blanket to pull over both of them, and the other three for a mattress for them both.
..well, he couldn’t help but laugh. The woman knew what she wanted, and she was going to get it no matter how he felt about it.
He wrote her three notes to give her throughout the following day and one for that night.
The notes for the following day were to give her new topics.
When left to her own devices, she talked about the world as if it were a giant fairy tale and he was prince charming.
He knew he was anything but, and she should by now, but she seemed to prefer to look at things differently than he’d ever been able to.
The note for that night made her smile and kiss him again, this time deepening the kiss before he had a chance to do it himself. He’d always imagined he would be the one in charge of kisses, but she didn’t seem to care. No, she was a special woman this wife of his.
When they went to bed for the night, she didn’t even pretend to sleep any distance from him. She crawled under the top cover and laid her head on his shoulder. “I like being this close to you,” she whispered to him in the dark.
“I like it too,” he said, amazed that he was able to say it without stammering. His heart was beating so quickly, as if all the eyes of the world were on him, but the words came easily.
“I love the notes you write me,” she said softly. “Thank you for taking the time to do it.”
He didn’t answer her aloud, but instead, he rubbed her back and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.
“Don’t you want to consummate the marriage yet?” she asked.
He chuckled, still in disbelief about just how forward his new wife was. “Home,” he said.
“I guess it will be nice for both of us to have a chance to take a bath before we get too close. I’d take a dip in the river, but I let one hand rest in the river earlier, and it was so cold. No, I’ll wait for a bath. But I won’t like it.”
That earned her another kiss, something that was happening much more frequently since they’d gotten the first one out of the way. The man wasn’t much for spoken words, but he was priceless in her eyes. And she couldn’t wait to get home.
*****
IN TOTAL, THEY SPENT two weeks in a boat on the Yukon River, and Sally kept up a steady stream of mostly one-sided conversation with Tom the entire way. He was happy she was so comfortable talking in front of him, and he became less nervous and spoke more freely every day.
But still he wrote her sweet notes. He wrote them at night, and she’d receive one right away, and then a few more interspersed the following day. She was almost sad when he pulled the boat over in the middle of the afternoon one day. “Now we walk,” he said.
“Are we a long way from Yeti?” she asked.
He shrugged. “If we hurry, we could make it before nightfall.” He smiled when he realized he’d spoken a longer sentence and not stammered once. He was getting more comfortable speaking around his beautiful, fanciful wife.
“Let’s hurry then!” Sally all but bounced up and down. “I want to get to your beautiful cabin in the woods.”
He frowned. “Just a cabin.”
“It will be our home. If it’s not already beautiful, I’ll make it that way.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. The woman had her dreams, and he would do his best not to let the difficult life she had ahead of her crush those dreams.
It was just past sunset when he turned off the road—which was really no more than a path through the forest—and after walking for a few minutes, she spotted a cabin. He was right. It was just a cabin. But she would make curtains for the window and turn it into a home they could both be proud of.
He opened the door, and she noted he hadn’t bothered to lock it. She hadn’t lived in a place where she didn’t need to lock her door since she was a child. Alaskan life would be difficult, and she would embrace the difficulty. She was home, and it would be glorious.
She hurried around the tiny one-room cabin. There was a bed off to one side and a counter with a few shelves above it. There were a few tin dishes, a pot, and a frying pan. That was all she would need to cook wonderful meals for the man she loved.
“What time do you go to work in the mornings?”
“Eight,” he said.
“And when do you get home?”
“Five or so.”
“I’ll make certain supper is always on the table at five. Is there a well so I can draw water for our baths?”
He shook his head. “A stream. In the morning.”
She frowned. “Are you saying you’re going to make me wait another day before we can consummate this marriage?”
He nodded. “Maybe two.” He was teasing of course, but he loved the scolding look she gave him, with her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face.
“Thomas W. Harlan. You’re going to be the death of me.”
He chuckled and opened his arms wide. She immediately flew into them. “Hardtack and jerky, then bed,” he finally said. “We need sleep.”
“We do. I want to cook you a wonderful meal, but I can see that there’s no sense in even trying tonight. I plan to explore and buy seeds for my garden tomorrow. Maggie wrote there is a general store in town, and I’ll find it.”
He pointed in the direction of the store. “There’s a path to town.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to see the town as well as Maggie and Belle. And Belle should have had the baby by now. I’m so excited!”
He shook his head. She was so happy about everything. He hoped the harshness of their lives wouldn’t crush her spirits.
She pulled the sheets and blanket off the bed and shook them out. “I’ll give them a proper cleaning, but not tonight,” she said as she put them back on the bed, folding the corners of the sheets perfectly.
He pulled out hardtack and jerky, and she sighed as she looked at it. “This is the last time I eat this for a long time! Hopefully ever!”
He shrugged. “I eat it often.”
“Not anymore. You have a wife to cook for you now. Do you like sweets?”
“I do.”
“I’ll make sure I bake for you then,” Sally found her nightgown in one of her bags. She had slept in her clothes the whole time she was on the trail, and though she didn’t want to put it on until she’d bathed, she wanted to wear something clean for a change.
Tom saw her pick up her nightgown and took it as his cue to go outside. “I-I’ll be right back.”
“You can stay,” Sally said. “We’re married.”
He was gone before she finished what she was saying. She shook her head, wondering how he was going to be able to handle marital relations with her when he was afraid to see her with no clothes on.
She used the water that was left in her flask to wash herself. There wasn’t nearly enough to do a good job, but she washed what she could before slipping the nightgown over her head and climbing into bed.
She sighed contentedly as she felt the mattress under her back. It had been so long since she’d been in a real bed that she’d almost forgotten how good it felt to have somewhere soft to sleep.
She was almost asleep before Tom returned. He undressed quickly and climbed into bed beside her, unsurprised when she immediately moved toward him. Winter nights would be much warmer from now on. He was certain of it.
*****
FIRST THING THE FOLLOWING morning, Sally looked around for food, but there was nothing in the cabin to cook. Tom got out of bed shortly after she did, and she asked where he kept the food.
He shrugged. “I eat jerky and hardtack.”
She sighed. “I suppose we’ll have jerky and hardtack for breakfast then, and I’ll procure some food to cook before suppertime. I cannot keep eating this day in and day out.”
“Put anything on my bill at the store.”
“All right.” She took the hardtack and jerky, placing the food on plates and putting them on the table. Perhaps she couldn’t serve anything nutritious or good-tasting, but they didn’t have to eat like animals anymore.
After breakfast, Tom kissed her cheek and hurried off to work. He wasn’t expected back yet, but there was always work for a man ready to toil away.
Sally found the stream and filled the tin tub that had been attached to the side of the house with water she warmed on the stove.
She looked forward to cooking on the stove he’d talked about in his letters, but first, she needed a bath something awful.
She planned to prepare one for Tom right after supper.
She took her time bathing, using the soap he had. She didn’t much care for how rough it was, but she needed a thorough cleaning, and it was available. Perhaps there would be something softer and better at the store in town. She’d find out soon enough.
After her bath, she emptied the tub, disturbed at how dirty the water looked. Of course, she had never gone that long without a bath, so the water shouldn’t surprise her.
She dressed in the only clean dress she had, promising herself she would do laundry the following day. Today needed to be about getting the cabin stocked with food. Before leaving for the store, she looked around for a trap door that would lead to a cellar and finally found it.
Opening the door, she climbed the ladder down into the cellar, and she found some shelves had been built, but they were empty. There was so much work to be done, and she was glad of it. She didn’t know how she would fill her time otherwise.
She followed the path to town and found the store. It was the only building that had a sign out front, and it simply read General Store.
She walked inside and instantly spotted Maggie at the counter, putting some jars filled with a red substance there.
The woman behind the counter smiled. “Strawberry jam. This is one of my bestsellers. Thank you, Maggie.”
“I do believe I deserve an embrace from my friend I haven’t seen for many months,” Sally announced, watching as Maggie turned and excitedly rushed toward her, hugging her.
“I’m so glad you’re here! When did you arrive?”
“Just after dark last night. You weren’t joking about how hard that journey was. I’m glad I don’t have to return!” Sally sighed. “And Tom doesn’t have any food at all in the cabin, so I need to shop.”
“I just brought in some jam. The wild strawberries will be ready in another month, and we have way too many jars left.”
“Brought in? To sell?”
Maggie nodded. “Belle and I bake bread and all kinds of treats every day, and the lumberjacks buy them all as fast as we can bake them. I can’t not work, and Belle feels the same, though she’s slowed down a bit since Bertie came along.
Wait until you see him! He’s the most beautiful baby in the world! ”
Sally grinned, nodding toward Maggie’s swollen belly. “I have a feeling you won’t be saying that for long.”
“Probably not. I need to have a girl to marry Bertie. Don’t you think that would be wonderful?”
“I do! I remember hearing the two of you talking about having children who grew up together and eventually married. I hope it really happens!”
Maggie smiled. “I hope so too. But now our children can also be friends with your children.”
“I hope to have at least six dozen,” Sally said dreamily.
“I’m not sure you’ll still feel that way after you’ve had one or two,” Maggie said with a laugh.
“Oh, I’m sure I will!”
“Let me introduce you to Katie.” Maggie led Sally to the woman behind the counter of the store. “Katie, this is Sally. She married Tom Harlan and arrived last night.”
Katie smiled. “It’s so good to meet you, Sally. The girls have been anticipating your arrival. If you like to bake, I sure wouldn’t mind having one more baker.”
Sally nodded. “I don’t mind baking. I love gardening though. Do you have room to sell fresh produce when it’s ready?”
“I do. I can also sell canned carrots and other canned vegetables. The men here get so tired of eating the same things all the time, they will buy anything.”
Sally smiled. “I’ll keep that in mind. Maggie mentioned wild strawberries. If I find some, could I sell those here?” She was getting excited about being able to contribute monetarily.
“Absolutely. Belle’s strawberry shortcake is a favorite of several of the men.” Katie smiled brightly. “I’m happy to not be the only woman in town. There are four of us now!”
“Several other women from the hotel are considering coming as well,” Sally said. “I don’t think there will be a shortage of women for very long.”
Katie’s grin lit up the room.
Sally couldn’t help but feel drawn to the older woman. She had dark hair peppered with gray and seemed to genuinely be happy that women were moving into town.
“I’ll be purchasing some food today, but Tom said to put it on his account.”
“No problem! If you’re going to sell to me, then I’ll deduct whatever you buy from what you get paid. That’s how I work things with the other women.”
“That sounds wonderful!” Sally said. “I’m so glad I moved to Alaska Territory!”