Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Brushing her hair while seated on Jonas’s bed, Josie reflected on how supper went hours ago.
Travis had sat quietly while Aunt Polly did most of the talking.
Josie had been nervous they’d have so many questions to ask about her, but thankfully Aunt Polly mostly spoke about the town and the projects the church ladies were working on.
Carrying too many secrets was a treacherous burden, especially when previous secrets had once put her life in jeopardy with Marcus—and now, her child’s life rested in the hands of a stranger who could just as well be cruel.
One wrong word could blow her cover and expose her deception.
So she found it safer to remain quiet, speaking only to the children.
After all, they were one of the reasons she was here.
When Travis asked about her family in the wagon, Josie told the truth, only leaving out her husband and baby.
She didn’t have much time left now that she was four months along.
Soon, she would be showing. Josie placed her hand over her small bump.
Only two more days, she told herself. But reminding herself of her true intentions made her stomach sour again.
Travis was a polite man from what she had seen in the short time she’d known him.
Josie touched her throat and swallowed hard. Until he has you in his grasp.
“Hello, Miss Callahan,” Lillian said cheerfully, entering dressed in her nightgown. Ivy followed behind her, her hair tucked inside her nightcap.
“Hello, girls.”
From what Josie observed, Lillian was a chatterbox and Jonas was very passionate about drawing and animals. However, Ivy wasn’t very talkative. Josie didn’t blame the girl. After losing her own mother, Josie could imagine the child’s pain in getting a new one.
Ivy pulled back her bed sheets while Lillian pounced onto Josie’s bed. Lillian reached out to touch Josie’s hair. “Your hair is pretty.”
“Lillian!” Ivy snapped, her lips pursed in a scowl. “Don’t touch Miss Callahan’s hair.”
Lillian jumped back and lowered her head. “I’m sorry.”
Josie smiled, rubbing Lillian’s shoulder. “It’s all right. I don’t mind.”
Lillian’s frown curved into one of her signature smiles—her mouth widening enough to expose the top of her gums. Lillian began rubbing the ends of her brown hair. “Miss Callahan, Pa says when you’re married, I have to call you by your first name, but I forgot.”
“It’s Josephine,” Josie answered.
The child’s eyes widened. “That’s a long name.”
Josie chuckled. “It is, but you may call me Josie.”
“Josie,” Lillian repeated with her blue eyes bulging. “I like it!”
Ivy huffed, falling back onto her mattress. “Lillian, come to bed. Let Miss Callahan rest.”
“All right, all right!” Lillian grumbled, rolling her eyes. She reached out, giving Josie a hug. “Goodnight, Miss Callahan.”
“Goodnight, Lillian,” Josie said in a soothing whisper, rubbing the child’s back. When Lillian pulled away, Josie turned her head towards Ivy, who was already tucked under the covers. “Goodnight, Ivy.”
Ivy didn’t respond. The covers rustled as they settled into their beds.
Josie peeled back her quilt and went underneath.
She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath that filled her lungs with the comforting scent of fresh linen.
It was the first time she had laid down all day, and as her body sank into the mattress, she let out a soft sigh.
The tension in her back eased as it straightened against the supportive surface, and for a moment, she allowed herself to forget the day’s events, surrendering to rest.
Her eyes practically closed on their own, and she placed her hands on her midsection, bidding her little one sweet dreams. Within minutes, Josie’s mind settled enough for her to sleep.
However, her rest was interrupted by a small cry. Josie opened her eyes and sat up. The crying carried through the thin walls. She grabbed her shawl from the chair where she had laid it and pulled it around her.
Josie crept down the hallway until she opened the door to Travis’s bedroom, except Travis wasn’t there.
He mentioned earlier he would be sleeping in the barn loft.
She made her way to the crib, her heart softening at the sight of the tiny, wailing figure.
She pulled Gideon up and sat in a rocking chair in the corner of the room.
“Shh,” Josie whispered, rubbing his soft head. “It’s all right.”
The baby quieted within moments as Josie cradled him against her shoulder, gently rocking him back and forth.
Soon enough, his cries faded into soft breaths, and he fell asleep again.
As Josie glanced up, she spotted Jonas fast asleep in his father’s bed, the covers tucked snugly around him. The boy sleeps like a rock.
Josie sighed as Gideon’s small, gentle breaths echoed through the silence.
The moment was so peaceful, she didn’t want to leave the chair.
She wanted to stay in that rocker forever, holding her soon-to-be son.
What would it be like to hold the baby growing inside her?
She had been so consumed with running away, she rarely thought about holding it in her arms.
Looking down at Gideon, she thought of Travis.
Would her unborn child have a father to hold him or her too?
However, that depended on how she acted Saturday night.
Josie buried her face in Gideon’s shoulder.
In this room, she’d deceive Gideon’s father.
Her thoughts were sickening, but her concern for her unborn child outweighed her morals.
Aunt Tia’s voice echoed in her mind. What man is going to believe a woman who is so desperate to go west and marry a stranger with kids? . . . You’re too young and attractive. Josie had nowhere else to go, no one to turn to.
Josie kissed the sleeping baby’s head. “I’ll try my best with you, but I can’t promise, little one,” she whispered. “I’ll try to be your ma.”