Chapter 5
The telegram that Bridie sent to her family back in Boston was short and to the point—though for the first time in her life, with Jed McHale paying for it, she had plenty of money to be as verbose as she wished.
But she had other things she’d rather spend that money on, of course.
Jed raised an eyebrow at her as he handed over the coins to the telegraph operator. “You’re sure that’s all you want to say.”
Bridie nodded firmly. “It’s all that needs to be said right now,” she said. “I’ll write them a letter about it.” She bit her lip. “They’ll want to hear all the details, after all. If I start including them now, the telegram will cost fifty dollars by the end of it!”
Jed gave her a long, thoughtful look.
“You miss ‘em, don’t you?”
She did miss them—more sharply, more painfully than she had even imagined.
Her loving, hardworking mother, her happy-go-lucky father with his quick wit, Ella with her sweetness and patience, poor earnest James, and the twins—yes, she missed them.
When she closed her eyes, she could picture them with her, surrounded by the green of Ireland’s hills.
Perhaps one day that dream would become a reality. She just had to stay the course.
“Yes,” she answered at last, feeling that she could not properly express herself to Jed—at least, not without breaking down in tears.
But she suspected that he caught sight of the tears in her eyes even so, for he was looking closely at her once more.
He gave a slow nod, and then the corner of his mouth curled into a smile.
“Go on up the road to the café, why don’t you, Bridie, and order us some coffee. I’ll settle up with George here and meet you in a minute.”
It puzzled her a little at the time, though she didn’t give much thought to it.
He had already settled with the telegraph operator, as far as she could tell.
But perhaps he had some other business—men like him often did, she supposed.
She put it out of her mind and did as she was bid, her thoughts instead occupied with memories of her family and Boston.
It wasn’t until the next week, when he came back from a trip to town, waving a piece of paper with a wide, self-satisfied grin, that she realized what he must have been doing.
“What is it, Jed?”
“See for yourself.” He handed her the paper. She unfolded it, her blue eyes scanning it swiftly, and she caught her breath. She looked up at him again, eyes wide, and he nodded.
“Is it true?”
He laughed. “Unless your pa is given to tellin’ fibs, I reckon it must be.”
“Oh!” She clasped the telegram to her chest, closing her eyes and breathing deeply for a moment. “Ella’s coming! Oh, Jed, thank you!”
Overcome by excitement and gratitude—and a strange sense of relief, as though everything were going to be all right now—she flung her arms around her husband-to-be.
She felt a slow, deep chuckle ripple through him, and his arms enclosed her in return, holding her close.
It wasn’t until she suddenly realized their heartbeats were echoing in swift tandem—as though she had two hearts of her own—that she came back to herself with a thump and hastily stepped back, out of the reach of his arms. He was still smiling down at her, as though he hadn’t noticed anything amiss.
She lifted her chin and straightened her shoulders, trying to regain her composure—and to forget how welcome that brief, warm embrace had been.
“Thank you, Jed,” she said again, with dignity this time—at least as much as she could manage. “It’ll be lovely to have my sister here for the wedding.”
“I’m glad your ma and pa could spare her,” he said. “I invited ‘em all to come, but the first reply said your pa was too busy with work. Sounds like he’s started up his own carpentry business, on top of workin’ with the other.”
“Yes—Ma mentioned it in her last letter. He was able to pay off their debts with the money you gave him.” The fee Jed had paid to become engaged to her; she clamped her lips together tightly, unwilling to dwell on something that still caused her pain.
Over time, she had come to understand her father’s reasoning better, but it still hurt to remember that he hadn’t been entirely honest with her—and that he had avoided the subject simply because he knew she would be upset.
Jed, too, was anything but eager to speak about it again.
“I’m glad that things are better for ‘em,” he said instead. “Maybe next year they’ll all come down for a visit. Or you and I can go to Boston instead.”
It was an offer that was calculated to brighten her outlook, she knew.
He must understand the complexity of her feelings, even now that the two of them had gotten to know each other.
Even now that—well, the memory of his kiss still made her cheeks burn.
But she could not lean into this promise, or entertain it too thoroughly.
After all, she greatly hoped to be somewhere else by next year—somewhere much farther away than Boston.
“Perhaps,” she said, and lifted the crumbled telegram once more. “Thank you again, Jed.”
“Whatever makes you happy, Bridie,” he said softly as she turned away.
The next few weeks were now consumed not only by preparations for the wedding itself but also by Ella’s arrival.
The telegram had arrived the day after she’d left; if all went well, even in the autumnal weather, Ella would arrive in Galveston just ten short days before the wedding.
With renewed enthusiasm, Bridie threw herself into getting everything ready.
With Jed’s suggestions guiding her, she arranged with the dressmaker’s shop to prepare a wedding dress that was finer than anything she had ever worn.
Not for nothing, she thought, had Jed called the shop the best in the county; even among the hoi polloi of Boston, she had never seen anything like the fabrics they offered.
Deciding on the ribbon trimming alone took up an entire day.
She spent more and more time in town, realizing only after the fact that she was starting to rather enjoy her outings—especially the time she was able to spend at the mercantile along with Melinda Barton, helping her keep the ready-made counter organized.
More than once on these occasions, she found herself idly wondering what it would have been like to simply accept a job posting from Jed instead of his hand in marriage.
She could have spent time here, earning her keep and saving up until she had enough to send herself to Ireland, without having to rely on anyone else—or resort to subterfuge.
Jed wouldn’t be Jed—he would be her employer, her boss.
Jedediah McHale. And she would have meant nothing more to him than another employee.
But each and every time that this daydream began to go through her mind, her eyes would somehow meet Jed’s across the room, and she would feel a familiar little shiver run through her at the intensity of his gaze.
No—she couldn’t wish that she had met Jed under different circumstances, much as she was unable to sort through her complex feelings.
It would be so much easier if things were simpler!
At last, the day of Ella’s arrival was upon them, and Jed drove her to the train station behind his four fine, matched horses. She waited on the platform with bated breath as the train finally puffed up into the station—only half an hour late. The weather had held.
And Ella was there at last.
“Oh, Ella!”
“Bridie! Bridie! Oh, I’m so glad to see you!”
The two sisters held each other tightly, both laughing with sheer delight at seeing each other again. Bridie squeezed her younger sister closely for a moment more, then released her and stepped back, hands still on her shoulders, surveying her.
“You’ve gotten taller, haven’t you?”
Ella shook her head, smiling.
“I don’t think so. But it’s funny, isn’t it, the tricks that memory will play on you?”
“I suppose so! Well, taller or not, you look exactly the same, my girl.”
“You don’t, though,” Ella said, eyes wide. “You’ve always been beautiful, Bridie, but you have a—glow about you! Is that what happens when you become a bride?”
Bridie felt a blush coming on—she certainly seemed to be blushing more easily these days, ever since the introduction of Jedediah McHale into her life! —but laughed it off as best she could.
“Oh, nonsense,” she said, chucking Ella under the chin with her fingertip.
“I’m sure I haven’t changed a bit—beyond a nicer dress, I suppose.
Jed has been spoiling me badly since I arrived.
Just wait until you see the ready-made counter at the general store, Ella—you’ll faint!
And you’ll adore Melinda Barton, too—she’s become a good friend to me, and so quickly. ”
She knew she was beginning to ramble; she couldn’t seem to help it, so glad was she to have her sister there with her. But Ella glanced beyond her to where Jed waited near the carriage, hands in his pockets, an expectant smile on his face.
“Is that him?” Ella asked quietly, nodding in his direction.
Bridie took a deep breath.
“Yes,” she said. “That’s him. Come along, Ella—we’ll fetch your things in a minute.” She slipped her sister’s arm through the crook of her elbow and advanced on the waiting Jed. “Jedediah McHale, this is my sister, Ella Hamilton.”
It was everything that Bridie could have hoped for, seeing her sister meet the man she was engaged to marry for the first time.
The two exchanged rather shy smiles, and Jed put out a hand for Ella to shake.
His eyes darted back to Bridie almost at once, as though seeking her approval, and she gave him a warm smile in return.
She hoped he could understand just how happy this had made her—and hoped that her own heart would understand that it changed nothing about her plans, even so.
Yes—everything was very complicated.
It was later, as she walked Ella through the hallways of the beautiful home that was to be hers, that they finally caught up on each other’s news.
Ella carried greetings from the family that had been left behind in Boston; it felt like a little piece of home, of Ireland, to have Ella there with her, and Bridie found herself reluctant to share her with anyone else, even to sit down to supper.
Still, it was a pleasure to show Jed’s home to her, too.
“It’s beautiful,” Ella said—more than once—gazing at every detail with wide eyes and an open mouth. “I can hardly believe it! And all this is to be yours when you’re married!”
Bridie restrained her answer to a simple, “Yes, to share with Jed.”
“Jed,” Ella said, smiling. “He’s…rather quiet, isn’t he?”
“He isn’t too quiet,” Bridie said swiftly, feeling a frown take form. “It’s just that you have to get to know him.”
“As you have done, obviously,” Ella said, smiling.
Bridie fought off a blush, but felt it still darkening her cheeks despite her best efforts to the contrary.
“I—I suppose I know him a little,” she said defensively. “At least—I know him better than you do, Ella.”
“I should hope so. I’ve only just arrived.”
“Precisely! So there’s no point in making judgments about Mr. McHale’s character when your opinion is just as likely to change!”
“I’m not making judgments,” Ella said mildly. “I just noted that he was quiet, that’s all—and that’s nothing bad, Bridie. Remember, I’m a little quiet, too.” Her smile was earnest, and Bridie felt a surge of shame run through her. She put an arm around her sister and pulled her close.
“Of course,” she said. “How could I forget anything about you, Ella? I’m so glad to have you here.”
“It was very kind of Mr. McHale to invite me. I know he only did it to please you.”
“Oh, you must call him Jed, Ella.”
“I suppose so,” Ella said softly. “After all, he’ll be my brother very soon.”
This thought took Bridie aback, and she paused in the twilight-shadowed hallway, her mind racing. Yes, Jed would be her sister’s brother-in-law, a relative in his own right. They would be connected, too…
Perhaps it was then that the plan began to take shape, though she didn’t realize it until a few days later. For the moment, it was enough to give Ella another welcoming smile, to readjust her arm around her sister’s shoulders, and to turn her toward the dining room.
“Come on, my dear,” she said. “They’ve waited on us long enough for supper.”