Indeed, there was nothing feminine about her virile husband. Hearing him laugh made her eyes twinkle with joy. Oh, how she loved him. She wondered if he would ever know... The realization that the culmination of their agreement was looming closer each day made her heart ache but she quickly shoved the specter aside and concentrated on the here and now.
Once the food was on the table and everyone was seated, Doc had offered the blessing, and then—as the diners still held hands—he had requested that they go around the table and share one thing that they were thankful for on this heartwarming Thanksgiving Day.
One by one they did just that. Mary’s eyes had misted as she heard her brother express gratitude for his freedom, and her husband expressed his appreciation for a lovely wife and new baby on the way. When it was her turn, she had emitted a tearful laugh and said she couldn’t pick just one blessing—she was thanking God for her brother’s miraculous return, for friends and family and a comfortable home in which to live, and for her new husband and baby. Everyone aah’d and Mary blushed as Dwight leaned over and brushed a soft kiss on her lips. What a perfect moment!
After that memorable evening, the days had flown by. Dwight was working hard on a new case and was meticulously studying David’s copies of James Kent’s four-volume set of Commentaries on American Law each night, and Hank labored out at the Swigert’s farm, toiling determinedly to make sure the family had everything they needed for the quickly approaching cold weather.
Mary spent many enjoyable days with Pearl and several of the church ladies, working on projects, laughing, and enjoying themselves as they sewed gifts for their loved ones. Sometimes they would gather in Doc’s parlor or the boarding house. Other times at the parsonage, and there were a few occasions in which the ladies had taken turns hosting.
Mary made new shirts for each of the men in her life, embroidered hankies for each of the ladies, and sewed dresses for the matching dolls she had helped Doc pick out to buy for the twins.
Three days before Christmas, Dwight, Tobias and Hank went out into the woods surrounding the town and brought back three flawless Christmas trees…one for Doc’s house, a small one for Tobias and Pauline’s room at the boarding house, and one for the Swigert family.
The specimen they chose for Doc’s parlor was nearly nine feet tall and finely proportioned, and they had worked together to set it up in front of the tall corner window. Everyone had a marvelous time decorating it with long strands of popped corn, ribbons, candles, colorful balls, and handmade ornaments the girls had fashioned at school. Dwight had even lifted one of the twins up high enough to place the angel at the top.
Soon, the rest of the house slowly became outfitted with holly and pine; the woodsy scent filling the rooms with the magic of Christmastime. Swags of garland were hung on the windows as well as the handrails. Pearl and Pauline created a lovely wreath for Doc’s front door, complete with pine cones and long streams of red ribbon. All of the hearths in the house boasted mantlepieces decorated with ferns and evergreens. The twins had hung stockings on the parlor mantle, and each day a new one mysteriously appeared, adding to the collection until everyone in the household had one hung and waiting to be filled on Christmas Eve.
Just the week before they brought in the tree, the rest of the Christiansen family’s belongings had arrived by train, having been carefully boxed up and sent from Louisville by workers hired by the Fetterman’s. They had stored the various boxes away in the attic and basement.
The night the tree was put in place, Pearl and her new fiancé—Doc—had happily brought in a box of Pearl’s traditional Christmas decorations, and the jolly physician had made a point of allowing his bride-to-be to decorate in any way she chose, saying he’d never been much good at that. The twinkle behind those wire rimmed glasses said that he adored everything his new love did.
Mary couldn’t have been happier to watch them…although she did wish that she and Dwight could have a lasting relationship such as Doc and Pearl seemed destined to enjoy. If only ours wasn’t just for show, she mused with a sigh.
Just then, Dwight came up behind her, spun her around, and grinned playfully as she squawked in surprise. Pointedly looking up to draw her attention to the item hanging above their heads, he teased, “My wife is standing under the mistletoe, so I’m happy to accommodate,” before swooping down and planting a big kiss right on her lips.
Pearl chuckled and elbowed them out of the way so that she could get in on the action, placing herself directly under the sprig. Doc laughingly obliged.
And so, the fun continued in the Reeves/Christiansen household until finally, it was Christmas Eve.
Charise had invited them all to her and Finn’s annual Christmas party, which they hosted on the ground floor of the former Lone Tree Saloon—their home and Finn’s barbershop.
Mary loved hearing the stories of the building’s unique history, such as the time the larger-than-life outlaw, Jesse James—dead nearly two years now—had actually crashed Finn and Charise’s wedding reception because he hadn’t heard the place was no longer operating as his favorite watering hole in all of Nebraska!
With only two weeks to go until her baby was due to make his or her entrance into the world, it wasn’t a stretch to say that she hoped
