Falling in Love With Her Husband (4 page)

my coat off and handed it to him. I watched as he put it on

one of the hooks.

He returned to me. “I hope you don"t think I"m

overstepping my bounds, but I think you"re the best looking

lady in this room.” Then he went to his seat.

My eyes grew wide. He was definitely bold! I

numbly sat down and stared ahead at the front of the room

where the teacher was getting the day"s lecture ready. Kent

Ashton was better than I thought he"d be. The teacher

stood up to speak, so I turned to my books and got my

things ready for the day.

***

Kent turned out to be very charming and attentive.

He seemed to care for me and we did have fun talking about

how creepy Alex was whenever he pulled another one of his

silly pranks. I spent Saturday afternoons in my parlor

listening to Kent tell me how exciting New York was. He

even brought pictures of New York and of the people he

knew there. It sounded better than Debbie claimed it to be.

“If we get married, I"l take you there so you can see

it for yourself,” he once said.

When December came, he asked my father if he

could court me, and my father said no. This was the second

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him he refused to let Kent be with me. Greatly upset, I

confronted my father about it that night at dinner.

“Your mother and I don"t trust him,” my father replied.

“He"s not what he appears to be.”

“Have you met his parents? You always told me that

I should judge a man by his parents.”

“Ann, I am the voice of experience and wisdom. You

have to trust my judgment.”

“No one else is appealing to me, Father. I have

been paraded through this town in front of countless

bachelors who are only interested in my dowry. And a

couple of those men were old enough to be your age. What

kind of life am I going to have if I"m confined to a loveless

marriage? All these men care about is what I can give them

instead of who I am. At least Kent doesn"t know about the

dowry, and he enjoys my company.”

My mother sighed. “What about Todd?”

“We"ve already had this discussion. I don"t want to

marry him.”

“Ann,” Father began, “marriage is more than fleeting

emotion. It is best built upon a foundation of friendship.

You aren"t looking at things clearly. Kent may be charming

but there"s something wrong with him. Todd, on the other

hand, is stable, trustworthy, and loyal. You can be sure that

he won"t do anything to harm you.”

“What proof do you have that Kent would do that?”

He stared at the fork in his hand. “I don"t have proof.

I just have a bad feeling about the boy.”

My mother nodded. “You should consider Todd. I

see the way he looks at you during church and when we"re

at the Brothers" home. He loves you. Why, a boy like that

will treat you as you deserve to be treated. What you and

Todd need is to spend time together. Then you might see

him the way he real y is.”

“I spent time with him in October. He"s alright but

he"s not... Wel , to be frank, he"s not exciting.”

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My father set his fork aside. Picking up his pipe, he

looked at me. “So you are opposed to Todd?”

“Yes! I don"t love him.”

“Alright. Your mother and I wil speak with Kent"s

parents so we can get a better idea of what he is like.”

He kept his promise and both he and my mother

concluded that his parents were respectable people, so they

allowed the courtship. I was ecstatic. Kent did mention

marriage and the possibility of checking Europe out on our

honeymoon. He said he had an uncle in Ireland who could

give us a personal tour. He even brought over brochures

and pictures. He frequently told me I was pretty and bought

me little gifts for no reason at all. I loved surprises, so this

was a treat. He took me to symphonies and the theatre. He

would only kiss me on the cheek and occasionally hold my

hand, so I knew he respected me.

Debbie, Rachel and Agnes sat with me and planned

out my future wedding. Agnes would be my maid of honor

while Debbie and Rachel would be my bridesmaids. They

were excited for me and it was fun to look forward to the

future instead of dreading it.

***

Then April came.

I got ready for Kent"s arrival at my house.

“Miss Ann, you have a caller,” Ginny announced.

I turned from my bedroom mirror in anticipation.

Ginny giggled.

“Do I look alright?” I asked her. I wore a dark blue

satin dress. He liked the color blue the best.

“You look as beautiful as usual. Come along. It

wouldn"t be right to keep him waiting.”

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. When I

entered the parlor, my heart raced with excitement. He

looked to be larger than life with his broad shoulders and tall

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frame. “Good afternoon, Kent,” I greeted warmly as I

approached him. “It"s good to see you. Will you sit down?”

“No thank you, Miss Ann.”

Surprised by his formality, I stood awkwardly. Out of

the corner of my eye, I noticed Ginny shrug, just as

bewildered as I was. I waited for him to speak but he

refused to look at me. I knew something was wrong, so I

took great care in asking my question. “Did you have a bad

day?”

“No. I...I have to tell you something,” he mumbled,

staring at the lace curtains on the other side of the room.

I was afraid of what he had to say, so I didn"t press

him to continue.

He sighed loudly. “I don"t know how to tell you this.”

I remained silent. Part of me needed to know while

another part wished to remain ignorant. At last, I asked, “Is

someone in your family ill?”

“No, nothing like that.”

By now, I was squirming. When I could not stand the

awful silence anymore, I demanded, “What is it?”

“I cannot call on you again.”

“What?” I dumbly asked.

“I love Rebecca Johnson, and I intend to marry her.”

“How...When...?” I couldn"t manage to finish my

question.

“It just happened. I didn"t plan it. I don"t think

anyone can plan things like this,” he hastily explained.

Before I could reply, he walked to the front door. “I

hope there won"t be any hard feelings between us. I"l see

you in church tomorrow. Good-bye, Miss Statesman.”

And just like that he was out of my house and out of

my life. I didn"t know how long I sat in the chair, staring

blankly at the wall in front of me. All I kept wondering was

how he could claim to love me one day and claim to love

someone else the next. Ginny sat by me. I took small

comfort in her presence. I appreciated the fact that I didn"t

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have to talk to her. I wished to be alone with my thoughts

for awhile.

When dinner came, I went through the motions in a

daze. I ate dinner outside on the veranda with my parents

but I didn"t participate in their conversation. I wasn"t hungry

so I kept moving the food around on my plate.

“Ann, my dear, what"s wrong?” my mother asked.

I took a deep breath. My parents didn"t like it when I

cried. Tears were not allowed in front of others. I braced

myself. “Kent came by today, and he announced his

engagement to Rebecca Johnson.”

“He"s going to regret it someday,” my father softly

replied.

“Oh my dear Ann, is there anything we can do to

help you?” She put her arm around me and gave me a

gentle squeeze.

I battled with my sense of grief and humiliation.

They had warned me. Yet, they were being gracious about

it. I felt like such a fool for not listening to them.

“I want to be alone right now. May I be excused?” I

fought back my tears.

“Of course you may,” my mother said. She quickly

wiped the tears welling in her eyes on her handkerchief.

Her concern for my emotional welfare made me

grateful for her. I could tell by the look in my father"s eyes

that he also grieved for me. Even if they were most likely

glad for the ending courtship, they didn"t show it because

they loved me. Their support and concern gave me a calm

deep in my heart.

That night, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the

pillow, and I woke up refreshed and eager for church. The

reality of Kent and Rebecca didn"t sink in until I saw them

sitting together at church. He leaned over and whispered

something in her ear. She laughed so loud that I could hear

her from across the room.

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I felt faint. I leaned on my parents for support.
Don’t

cry,
I repeated to myself.

“He has nerve,” my mother angrily whispered.

“He"s just a foolish young man. He doesn"t realize

what he"s giving up,” my father replied.

“He and Rebecca are flaunting themselves in front of

everybody. It"s not proper.”

“Please, let"s sit down,” I interrupted.

On our way to our usual pew, we passed the

Brothers. I looked for Agnes but figured she was talking to

some of our other friends.

My parents stopped to talk to Mr. and Mrs. Brothers.

I tried not to look awkward, standing by myself in a room full

of people who were happily socializing.

“Good morning, Ann,” Todd greeted, his hands in his

pockets.

“Good morning, Todd,” I politely replied. Usually,

that was all we ever said to each other at church, so I was

surprised when he didn"t leave and sit down. I pulled my

eyes away from Kent and Rebecca. “Is there something you

want to discuss?”

“Are you ready to finish school?”

“We stil have a month to go,” I absently reminded

him. Rebecca"s laughter echoed through the building. Out

of the corner of my eye, I saw Kent smile at her.
He used to

reserve those special smiles for me.

“Have you thought about what you"re going to do

after graduation?”

I turned back to him. Why was he still talking to me?

Not wishing to be rude, I answered him. “No. I don"t know

what to do.” I had planned to be Kent"s wife. Now my future

was a blank slate, and I didn"t know what to put on it. Noting

that he was stil standing by me, I cleared my throat. “What

about you? Are you going to work at the bank?”

He glanced at his father who was talking to my

father. “We"l see.”

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I wondered what he meant but didn"t ask for

clarification. I wanted him to leave me alone, so I tried to

discourage any further conversation by looking around the

church. I knew it was rude and my mother would not

approve, but I just wanted to sit down, get through the

service and hide in my house so I could get away from Kent

and Rebecca.

“What a wonderful idea!” my mother proclaimed.

“Fine. Then we"l see you next Sunday for dinner,”

Mr. Brothers replied.

I inwardly groaned. Another dinner with them? I

didn"t feel like eating ever again.

“We wil see you next week,” my father nodded.

Thank you, Father!
I gladly walked away from Todd

and sat in our usual place.

During the sermon, my eyes kept darting to Kent and

Rebecca. Once the sermon was over, Agnes ran over to

me while my parents talked to other people. Relieved to talk

to Agnes, I walked outside with her. The Spring air was

warm. I loved the feel of the sunlight on my face and

shoulders but had to open my umbrella to protect my

“delicate, white skin”.

“Tell me what happened between you and Kent,”

Agnes insisted.

“Kent"s going to marry Rebecca.”

“No!”

I nodded. “He informed me of their engagement

yesterday.”

“I don"t believe it. He loved you. Anyone could see

that.”

I shrugged. “I thought so too. But we were wrong.”

“What a shame. I was looking forward to being your

maid of honor.”

I sighed sadly as the plans we had made for my

wedding evaporated right before my eyes. Now I would be

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destined to be an old maid. I wondered how many cats I