The Romancing of Evangeline Ipswich (5 page)

Evangeline smiled as memories of Hutch’s teasing her flooded her mind. “No, it didn’t take much. At least not for you.”

“Well, it’s good to know that you remember me for something, at least,” Hutch chuckled.

Remembered him for something? That was certainly understating things. Evangeline remembered Hutch for everything! Sure, his teasing, playful manner was one of the things she remembered most—one of the things she’d always, always loved about her best friend’s older brother—but there was so much more than that! Evangeline remembered how friendly he always was to everyone, including her. She thought of how heroic he was—of the time she’d lost her way in the city when she was six years old, having gotten separated from her mother in a crowd, and an eleven-year-old Hutchner LaMontagne finding her—frightened, sobbing, and cold—and carrying her all the way home. She remembered how strong he’d always been, bruising the cheeks and chins of school bullies when they bothered anyone who was too small or afraid to defend themselves. And she thought of the daydreams she had entertained for most of her life until he’d left Boston—daydreams of moments like she was living that very day—daydreams of having Hutch’s attention all to herself for a time.

“And here we are,” Hutch said as the team turned onto the main thoroughfare of Red Peak. “Jennie and Calvin’s house is the one down a ways, the one with the yellow shutters.”

He pointed toward a pretty little white house with yellow shutters at the windows. There was a large maple tree in the front yard, whose crimson leaves were already blanketing the ground.

“Oh, it’s so warm and inviting!” Evangeline exclaimed aloud.

“Well, Jennie lives there,” Hutch said. “What else would you expect?”

Evangeline glanced to him, nodding in agreement. Jennie herself was always warm and inviting. People had always been drawn to Jennie, just like bees to pollen.

Hutch pulled the team to a stop before the welcoming, quaint little house. He leapt down from the wagon seat, followed by Jones, and walked around to assist Evangeline.

“Here,” he said, holding out his strong-looking hands to her. “Come on down, and we’ll go in. Then I’ll come back for your trunk, all right? Jennie’s probably ready to fly around the room with impatience.”

Placing her hands on Hutch’s broad shoulders, Evangeline quivered with delight as his hands went round her waist and he lifted her down from the wagon seat.

“There you are, little Miss Ipswich,” he said, smiling at her. “Safely delivered to Red Peak and my sister. No doubt you two will be cackling like hens over old memories in no time.”

He offered her his arm, and she accepted it, causing goose bumps to race over her arms and legs. She was being escorted by Hutchner LaMontagne! There had been a time in Boston when every eligible young woman dreamt of just this very pleasure.

Hutch opened the front door to Jennie’s house, stepped in, and called, “Oh, baby sister, I have something for you.”

“Ahhhh!” came a squeal of delight from a room to one side of the entryway. “Come in here, Evie—this instant! I can’t wait one more moment to set eyes on you!”

Evangeline looked up to Hutch, saying, “Thank you so much for coming to get me, Hutch.”

Hutch smiled at her, touched the brim of his hat, and said, “My pleasure.” He chuckled when Jennie squealed her impatience again and said, “I’ll fetch your trunk and put it in the back room where you’ll be staying. Tell Jennie I’ll be back to help Calvin with supper when I’m finished up at the livery.”

“Oh, you don’t need to fix supper,” Evangeline assured him. “That’s what I’m here for.” She smiled and, hoping beyond hope that he would agree, said, “Why don’t you just come over for supper? About six, all right? I’m sure Calvin would enjoy the company of another man when there are two silly, cackling girls in the bedroom.”

Hutch nodded, grinned, and said, “Thank you. I’ll be here.” Again Jennie squealed. Hutch shook his head with amusement and said, “You better get in there before she gets out of bed and comes racing in here to get you.”

Evangeline smiled, nodded, and again said, “Thank you, Hutch.” She let go of his arm then, feeling disappointed in knowing he was leaving.

But when next she heard Jennie call, “Evie! Get your fanny in here! I’ve been waiting all day to see you,” she smiled at Hutch and hurried toward the bedroom he nodded toward.

“You girls have fun now,” Hutch said as he left by way of the front door.

Evangeline stepped into the bedroom to see her dear friend sitting upright in bed, arms outstretched toward her.

“Evie! Oh, Evie, I am so happy you’re here!” Jennie exclaimed.

Evangeline giggled, hurrying to the bed and throwing her arms around Jennie’s neck. “I’m so glad I’m here too!” Evangeline exclaimed as they embraced for a long time. She could hear Jennie sniffling and felt her tears on her cheek mingle with her own tears of joy.

“Oh, you’re just so beautiful!” Jennie breathed as she held Evangeline’s face between her hands and studied her a moment. “More beautiful than even I remember!”

Evangeline shook her head, however, saying, “But look at you! Your hair is so much darker than when we were girls, and your cheeks are so rosy. Expecting a baby makes you all the more radiant.”

“And fat!” Jennie giggled. “I swear I feel like an overripe watermelon.”

“Well, you don’t look like one,” Evangeline assured her friend. She studied Jennie’s dark brown hair, brown eyes, and rosy cheeks. “You look resplendent! And I’m so glad you asked me to come.”

“I’m glad you came, Evie,” Jennie said, brushing a tear from her cheek. “More glad than you even know. I’ve been having a hard time of it, you see.”

As more tears ran over Jennie’s cheeks—tears of fear, fatigue, and thankfulness at having a friend close by, Evangeline clasped her hands tightly in her own and said, “Well, I’m here now. And I’m going to take very good care of you, and we’ll talk and reminisce and have a wonderful time while we wait for your little bundle to arrive.”

“Thank you so much, Evie,” Jennie said as she burst into sobbing. “Thank you!”

Evangeline gathered her cherished friend into her arms, consoling her by stroking her hair and telling her that all would be well.

Evangeline was glad she had come. All her anxieties over leaving her family behind washed away in that moment. She knew they would return, but Jennie needed her now—needed her far more than anyone at home did. And if anything in life was certain, it was that Evangeline Ipswich needed to be needed.

“Oh, I just keep pinching myself to make sure I’m awake and that you’re really here, Evie!” Jennie exclaimed.

Red Peak’s doctor, Doctor Swayze, had indeed given Jennie strict instructions for bed rest. However, Jennie explained to Evangeline that she could be out of bed for about an hour or so a day, provided she didn’t stay on her feet too long. Therefore, as Evangeline busily prepared supper that evening, Jennie sat on a kitchen chair visiting with her as she did.

“Well, I’m just glad I arrived in time to make some supper for you and Calvin tonight,” Evangeline said. “After the stories you’ve told me about Calvin and Hutch feeding you nothing but bacon and eggs three meals a day—goodness sakes! You must be starving for something else!”

Jennie laughed. “In truth, I never thought a body could get tired of eating bacon. But I am! Still, it was either that or jerky, so I guess I should be thankful that the boys knew how to cook
something
!”

Evangeline giggled at the thought of Hutch trying to make supper for his sister. She hadn’t met Jennie’s husband, Calvin, yet, but she figured it must be quite a sight to see two men trying to provide three good meals a day for an ailing woman.

“I guess you should be, at that,” Evangeline agreed.

She slid a pan of biscuits into the oven, stirred the chicken stew in the big pot on the stove, and said, “And tomorrow I’ll bake a cake for you, Jennie. You deserve something sweet.”

“Well, I don’t know if I necessarily deserve it, but it would be heavenly, Evie!” Jennie sighed with excitement. “Just heavenly!”

Evangeline smiled as she sat down in a chair across the kitchen table from Jennie. She was so glad she was able to help her friend—to give her some much-needed female companionship, not to mention something to eat besides eggs and bacon. And now that they’d said their emotional hellos and had an hour or so to talk before Evangeline had started the stew cooking for supper, Evangeline couldn’t keep from asking the question she’d been wanting to ask Jennie from the moment she’d looked up to see Hutch standing on the platform at the train station.

“Jennie?” she began. “May I ask you something?”

“Of course,” Jennie assured her with a smile. “Although I bet I can ask the question for you,” Jennie said, smiling with understanding. “You’re going to ask me why I didn’t tell you in my letters that Hutch lived in Red Peak too, aren’t you?”

Evangeline laughed and nodded, confirming, “Yes! That is exactly what I was going to ask.”

Jennie still smiled yet shrugged, guiltily. “In truth?”

“Absolutely,” Evangeline encouraged with a smile.

“Well, one reason is that…well, I was afraid you wouldn’t come to visit me if you knew Hutch was close by,” she confessed.

Evangeline shook her head in disbelief. “Why ever would you think that, Jennie? You and I were so close as girls in Boston, and ever since we started exchanging letters, I’ve just realized how much I miss you. Why would you think that Hutch’s living here would keep me from you? For pity’s sake, that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

Jennie nodded in agreement. “I know. I know,” she admitted. “I suppose it’s just because…well, you’ll understand one day, Evie. Carrying a child just wreaks havoc with a woman’s emotions. I just kept thinking about how…about how in love you had always been with Hutch when we were younger, and I just thought that you might think you’d feel uncomfortable around him and not come to see me.” She reached out, taking Evangeline’s hands in her own. “But now I see this is just like old times when you and I used to have so much fun together, and Hutch was just…just there once in a while,” she explained with excitement. “And besides,” she added, lowering her voice, “it used to be so much fun to watch you wriggle when Hutch paid attention to you, and I’m sure I’ll find that it still is.”

“Jennie LaMontagne McKee!” Evangeline playfully scolded. “What a thing to say!”

But Jennie merely laughed and said, “Oh, I remember how over the moon you were for Hutch,” Jennie giggled. “Your cheeks would blush up red as radishes anytime Hutch spoke to you…or even glanced at you for that matter!”

In truth, simply revisiting memories of how infatuated she had been with Hutchner LaMontagne made Evangeline blush again in that very moment. “Oh, believe me, I
do
remember,” she admitted. “There were times I thought I might just faint dead away when he looked at me.”

“That’s because you used to hold your breath when he did,” Jennie reminded.

Evangeline laughed, “Oh, that’s right! I’d forgotten about that. What a ninny I was, fawning over your older brother like he was some dime novel hero or something.” Evangeline put her hands to her warm, pinked-up cheeks. “I’m so embarrassed remembering it now! Hutch must’ve thought I was the silliest girl in Boston.”

“Nonsense,” Jennie countered. “Hutch was always very fond of you. He thought you were adorable.”

“Adorable?” Evangeline giggled, rolling her eyes.

“Yes, adorable,” Jennie confirmed. “He once told me that he figured you’d turn out to be a very beautiful woman.”

“Oh, did he now?” Evangeline asked skeptically—even though Hutch had told her she was beautiful just that very day on the wagon ride from the train station to Jennie’s home.

“Yes, he did,” Jennie answered with a firm nod. “And he was right, wasn’t he?”

Evangeline sighed and shook her head, brushing aside Jennie’s compliment.

“Well, I’ll say this,” she began then. “As handsome a young man as Hutch was, he’s even more attractive now. He’s so tall, so broad-shouldered and brawny, with surely as square a chin as I’ve ever seen on a good-looking man. I could never have imagined that he’d improve on what were already such profound good looks.” She paused a moment and then added, “I was quite astonished when he told me he was, as yet, unmarried.”

Jennie smiled. “Well, you know Hutchner,” she said. “He never settles for second best or convenience the way some people do. Believe me, he could have his choice of women.” Jennie shrugged. “But no one has managed to win his heart yet.”

“I find that rather hard to believe,” Evangeline admitted.

“Me too,” Jennie agreed. “But it’s true.” Jennie cocked her head to one side then, asking, “And how did your Mr. Floyd Longfellow take the news that you were leaving Meadowlark Lake, hmm?”

Evangeline shrugged. “I have no idea. He didn’t say a word to me before I left, even when he passed me in the general store the day before I did.” She exhaled a heavy sigh of a burden lifted. “And I’m so very, very glad he didn’t. He’s a kind man of sorts. But he really just wants a wife so that he’ll have a mother for his little girls. Furthermore, I’m not at all attracted to him…not a bit.”

“Good!” Jennie said. “I don’t want an old widower with needy children for you as a husband, Evie. I want you to be swept away in passion, romance, and true, true love the way I have been with Calvin.”