Mail Order Meals - Kirsten Osbourne Page 0,37
Why would he think he had to hide his thoughts from her?
He took a deep breath. “My whole life, people have been annoyed by me. I was three when my mother left me at the orphanage, and I never knew why, but I think that’s why. The matron told me almost daily that I needed to go and annoy someone else. I had a girl I was sweet on at school, and she told me to go away.” He shrugged. “I’ve been trying to be quiet so you wouldn’t find me annoying and want me to go away like everyone else did.”
She shook her head. “Doug, I’m going to find you annoying at times, but I’m not going to leave you because of it. Or ask you to go away. I love you, and I’ll be by your side every day for the rest of our lives.”
Doug’s eyes widened. “You love me? Why?”
Trudie’s heart broke for him, and she walked to him, wrapping both arms around him. “I love you because you are a good man, and because my heart says you’re the man I want to spend forever with. Who cares if I find you annoying at times?”
“So, I don’t have to act with you the way I act with everyone else? Quiet all the time?” He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Is that why people in town tell me you’re quiet and don’t talk to anyone?”
He nodded emphatically. “I don’t want people to realize how annoying I am and want me to leave.”
“I can understand that, but I don’t find you annoying. Well, you were a little annoying about food at first, but even in the beginning I was more attracted to you than annoyed by you.”
He sighed dramatically. “Then I can really be me with you? And you’ll accept everything about me, warts and all?”
Trudie laughed. “I haven’t noticed any warts, but if you grow some, then I’ll accept them.”
Grinning, he lifted her off her feet for a moment until she was eye-level with him. “Marrying a woman who is good at everything is a little bit intimidating for a man like me. I was worried you’d run away, and I would lose the only woman that I’d ever love.”
Trudie smiled, feeling her heart soar in her chest with his words. “You really love me?” she asked.
“How could I do anything but? Every since you threw that cherry at me, I knew I was in love with you. I always will be.”
Trudie kissed him, sighing contentedly. “Well, I love you too, so I think we’ll be happy. Now put me down or supper is going to burn, and we both know you won’t live if you don’t get food within the next five minutes.”
“No, I won’t.” He grinned as he watched her scurry away to get his supper. She was definitely the woman he needed to spend the rest of his life with.
Epilogue
Trudie worked picking the last of her vegetables in September, thankful that her friend Marion was there to help. She was expecting, and she was a little tired as she went about her daily chores, but she was happy. Happier than she’d ever dreamed she’d be.
“I can’t believe we’ll be delivering babies around the same time,” Marion said. “How are we going to be able to help each other?”
“We’ll both go to one house, and one can nap while the other works with the babies, and we’ll take turns. We’ve learned how to work well together this summer, don’t you think?” Trudie asked. She loved the idea of her baby playing alongside Marion’s.
“Sounds perfect to me.”
After she’d finished canning for the day, and Marion had gone home, Trudie put supper on the table, smiling at Doug.
“What are you grinning about?” he asked.
“I’m just thinking how much I want the baby to look just like you. He needs to be a rancher like his father.”
“She needs to be a cook, like her mother.” Trudie sat down on Doug’s lap and wrapped her arms around him. “Hey, I’m hungry!”
She smiled. “I’m just sitting here for a minute, loving my husband.”
“Love me from over there,” he said pointing to the chair she usually sat in. When she stood to leave, he held her in place for a minute first. “I love you very much.”
“Life is just the way I imagined it would be. Perfect.”
Doug smiled, looking at Trudie and thinking the same thing. To him, life had been perfect since she’d arrived.
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