The Newlyweds Part 2 A Little House fanfic

 

The Newlyweds Part 2

A terrible rainstorm keeps Almanzo and Laura in the barn overnight and they have to make the best of it.  Story is complete in one chapter.

The Newlyweds Part 2

“We’re almost there,” an extremely wet Almanzo urged Skip and Barnum inside the barn while Laura, who was also soaked, held the doors open against the wind and rain. 

“Alright, Beth, we got ‘em inside,” Almanzo called out as Laura closed the doors against the storm.

“You got the sandwiches Sis made?  I could use another. “

“Which ones do you want?  We have two chicken salad sandwiches and three egg salad sandwiches left in….”  Laura started to say as she slipped on the wet ground and fell into Almanzo, who managed to catch her before she hit him in the face.

Almanzo did what any body would have done, he tried to pull her up, but she kept slipping.  Actually, the both of them kept slipping as the ground became wetter and wetter.  “The roof above us is leaking, Manly, I think we ..”

But he slipped and she slipped at the same time.  He grabbed her arms, but she fell anyway, taking him with her into the mud. 

The basket of sandwiches wrapped up in wax paper slipped off of Laura’s arm and fell sideways to the floor, spilling them out into the mud.  

The two of them tried to get up, but they kept falling.  They kept laughing and laughing until they couldn’t laugh anymore. 

Almanzo finally got his balance and pulled her up. “Beth?” he asked.  “Are you alright?”

“I think so, Manly, but my clothes…”

Almanzo smiled.  “Never mind you, look at me.  I’m a sight, huh?  I think this makes that mud fight you had with Nellie look like a picnic.”  He looked up.  “We’re going to have to patch up that leak, Beth.  I wonder how long it’s been doin’ that?”

Laura looked at him and smiled.  “Well, here’s something you might like.  I think we should get out of these clothes, Manly, before we catch our death.”

Almanzo smiled as he looked at Laura. “I don’t know who looks worse, but yes, you’re right about those clothes.   Then maybe we can relax and have those leftover sandwiches.”  He eyes scanned the ground.  “Where are they anyway?  Didn’t you have…”  His voice trailed off.

“Beth?”

“I had the basket on my arm, Manly, did you take them?  Where could they possibly..”

“Beth?” Almanzo said again, picking his head up.  He stared at her, his eyes wide with worry.  “Beth, look, over there.  The sandwiches, most of them spilled out into the mud.”

Laura followed his finger and stared at the basket, which was lying on its side.  Two of the sandwiches were buried in the mud, but still fully wrapped.  The rest of the sandwiches lay about in different position, some wrapped, some lay on the ground unwrapped.   Halves of sandwiches were on thrown every which way. Barnum was munching what looked to be egg salad and Skip was devouring an entire chicken salad sandwich. 

Almanzo turned to look at Laura and found her looking at him.  “Your sister,” she started to say, when Almanzo shook his head.

“How can you blame Sis?” he said looking at her.  “This isn’t her fault; she did the best she could.  How would she know that..”

“I’m not blaming anybody, Manly,” she said, putting her arms around his neck.  “This isn’t her fault, it’s not your fault either.  No one knew about the weather, no one knew the roof had a leak, how could anyone?  It hasn’t rained for weeks.  This is the first big rainstorm in a….”

Laura stopped talking and stared at Almanzo, who she found was looking at her. He seemed to be lost in her brown eyes, which right now were starting to well up with tears.

“Beth,” he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her, pulled her close and kissed her.  When they pulled apart, Almanzo looked at her with a concerned look on his face.

“Let’s not argue anymore tonight, okay?  It was an accident.  Things happen, Beth, it’s not the end of the world.  And do you know what?”

“What,” she answered, as he dried her tears with his thumb rubbing against her cheek.

“We can salvage some of those sandwiches and we can stop that leak, but do you know what’s really important to me now?  It’s you Beth, all I care about is you.  I love you.”  He placed his hands on either side of her face and pulled her close, bringing his lips down to hers. 

And again, they slipped as both fell down into the mud; with Almanzo falling first and Laura landing right on top of him.   

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 It was still raining when Almanzo woke and found Laura next to him, snoring lightly.  He smiled and shook his head.  He sat up and looked around.  They had climbed into the loft so that they’d get away from that nasty leak.  He was going to have to patch it up and quickly.  He already covered the ground with hay so no one else would slip. 

He looked up and to their left side to find that they had removed their wet and mud filled clothes.  Beth had them drying on a pallet not too far away from where they were sleeping. 

And suddenly, something occurred to him. “Beth,” he said, “Wake up.  I need to ask you about the lesson plan for tomorrow.  Sis has been asking about it for…”

Laura’s eyes opened and she smiled.  “Open my journal, Manly.  I wrote it out last night.  We’ll give it to her first thing in the morning.  She’ll be happy as a….”

But she never finished the rest of her sentence. 

And as they parted, his eye flew open.  “Our clothes, they’re all muddy.  She’ll know that we..”

Laura smiled and shook her head.  “Our clothes will dry and so will the mud.  We’ll be able to brush them off and no one will be the wiser.  We can go inside and change quickly and I’ll wash them out when we get back tomorrow night.”

Almanzo smiled, his eyes never leaving her face.  “You have the answer to everything, don’t you?”

Laura touched his cheek.  “No one has the answer to everything, Manly.  No one knows what will happen next and sometimes, we can’t control everything that happens either.  There is nothing written down, there is nothing to follow.  Everything happens for a reason.  There are no plans, Manly; everything happens at the spur of the moment.  And we’ll just have to deal with it, whether it’s good or bad.”

Almanzo looked at her. He lost his smile and his eyes went wide.  “What about my temper and what about my stubbornness?  We’ve got to control it, Beth.  I don’t want you mad at me.”

“Don’t you worry, Almanzo.  No one is perfect.  We’re both stubborn and we both have a temper. We all have our faults, Manly.  We’ll get used to each other.  Just give it some time. We’re new at this.”

Almanzo smiled and touched her cheek. ”I don’t know where I’d be without you, Beth.  You’re my life and my love.  I can’t make it without you.  I love you.”

Laura smiled and looked into his eyes.  “And I love you, Manly.  Everything will work out, you’ll see. And I have a feeling that we’ll be together for a long, long time.”

And Almanzo lay down next to her on the pallet, put his arms around her and pulled her close. 

And everything else was forgotten.

The Dream A Little House Fanfic

The Dream

Almanzo and Laura have another argument, this time it was about finding his guitar. Laura has had enough and walks out of the house leaving Almanzo alone by the fireplace.  It is then that something strange happens.  Story complete in one chapter.

The Dream

Almanzo was sitting in his chair near the fireplace waiting for Laura to come back.  They just had another argument, their second since they were married a month ago.  It was another silly argument, this time it was about his guitar.  He couldn’t remember where he put it and he wanted her to help him look for it.    

“I’m almost done grading these test papers, Manly.  It’ll be a few minutes, and then I’ll be free to help you.”

Almanzo looked at her.  It was always the same answer and he was tired of it.

Well, one thing led to another and Laura had walked out, slamming the door behind her.  He started to follow when he noticed that there were two doors in front of him.  The word IN was written on one door while on the other door was written OUT.

Almanzo frowned.  What the heck was this?  Why were there two doors in front of him?  Was this his imagination?  Was he dreaming?  He shook his head and smiled.  Why was he even thinking about this?  He knew where he wanted to go and that was OUT.

And that was the door he opened.

Almanzo called her name, but there was no answer and she was nowhere in sight.  Where could she have gone?

Where the heck could she have gone?  What was she doing?  There were so many possibilities and he went over all of them in his mind as he kept walking.  

She could be around the farm, but he didn’t see her anywhere.  She could be in the barn, by the chicken coop or sitting by the trees, thinking.

She could also be at her parent’s place.  That’s where she went the last time they had a fight.

And so, he decided to go there.

Suddenly, the ground under him felt different.   Almanzo looked down and noticed he was somewhere in the desert; at least it seemed like the desert anyway.  There was nothing surrounding him but sand.  There were no people anywhere, no houses, no civilization at all, just lots and lots of…

Wait; there was something in front of him.  It looked like a house.  A house with a sloping roof and standing in front of it was…

“Well, look at who’s finally decided to come by,” Charles said, as he stared at him. 

Manly shook his head. No, he thought, this isn’t right. What the heck was the little house doing here in the middle of a desert?   And what the heck was his father in law talking about?

“Charles,” Almanzo said, looking at him.  “All I want to do is talk to my wife.  I know she’s here.”

Charles Ingalls shook his head. “She not here right now, Almanzo, or else I’d ask if she wanted to see you.”

“Where is she? I figured she come here, like she did the first time we fought,” he said, looking at Charles.  “This time I made the first move, you have to give me some credit for that.” Almanzo shook his head. “Look, I love her and I want to make sure that she’s alright.”

“She’s around here somewhere, son.  She came here looking for you.”

 “Look, all I want to do is talk to her?”

Charles looked at his son in law.  “She’s with Perley Day and Eliza Jane right now, they’re looking all over for you. I sent Adam out, Caroline and the girls took the rig and went into town to make sure you hadn’t gone there.  No one seems to know where you disappeared to.”

He looked at Charles and frowned.  “What do you mean, looking for me, I haven’t gone anywhere, Charles. I’ve been alone at our place for Laura to come back.  And what are Eliza and Perley Day doing in Walnut Grove, anyway?”

Charles looked at him and shook his head.  “All I know is that you went to deliver something and didn’t come back.  And from what I heard that was some argument you had.”

Almanzo eye’s narrowed.  “Yeah, we had an argument, but it wasn’t any different than the ones we’ve been having.  Did I miss something?  What was I supposed to be delivering?  What the heck is going on here?  All I know is that I’ve been waiting for Beth to come back to our place since…”

“Manly?  What are you doing here?  Where have you been?  Everyone’s out looking for you.”

He turned forgetting all about Charles and the little house.  His father in law was telling the truth, there, in front of him, was his sister and younger brother.  And there was the woman he had been searching for standing with them.

His eyes grew wide.  “Beth?”

Perley Day looked at him, smiled at his sister and turned to face Laura.  “I told you he’d be back,” he said.

But Laura wasn’t paying attention.  She looked at her husband and smiled.  She started to run and he tried to meet her, but something was stopping him.  It was something deep and slimy, something that had no bottom.  And it seemed as though it was swallowing him up.

“Quicksand,” he whispered, as he sank lower and lower.  When was there ever quicksand in front of the little house?  “Beth?  I’m sorry about what happened.  I didn’t mean to make you mad at me.  I love you and I’ll love you always.”

 But there was no answer; the three of them had all disappeared.  He turned his head to the right and noticed that Charles and the little house were gone.  He was all alone and he was sinking fast.   A mist came out of nowhere and surrounded him as he called out his wife’s name over and over again.  But there was no answer.   There was no one there, no one to help him, no one to pull him out. 

It was then he noticed the two doors, the same two doors that he’d seen earlier; the ones that read IN and OUT.  He walked up to the door that said IN, maybe it would bring him back to reality, but he couldn’t grab the doorknob.  Something was holding him back.  Almanzo didn’t give up; he kept trying to reach it.  It was so close, just a little more…

Suddenly, whatever was holding him let go.   This time when he reached for the door knob, he was able to grab hold of it.  To his shock and surprise, he was able to turn the knob and the door opened without a problem. 

 “BETH?” he called. He looked left and right but there was no answer.  He was calling out to nothing, to no one.

And out of the mist came a voice he recognized.

“Almanzo, are you alright?” he heard the voice calling him.  “Manly?”

He woke with a start, straightened up in the rocker and saw her standing in front of him. He looked around trying to get his bearings.  There was panic in his voice as he stared at her.  “Beth? Beth?  Is that you?”

She was staring back at him and nodded her head.  “I’m here, Manly.  I just went outside to feed the chickens and to hunt some eggs. Then I came back inside to look for your guitar.”

And she held it up so that Almanzo could see it.  “I told you when I was finished with my schoolwork that I’d help you. And anyway, I thought that might help to calm me down and, you know, it did.”

He looked from her to the guitar and back to her.  He smiled.  “Where was it?”

Laura smiled.  “I found it upstairs in our bedroom against the wall.  It was behind the door, Manly. I guess you didn’t close the door…”

Almanzo wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “Oh Beth,” he whispered.  “I’m sorry.  I never meant to hurt you and the last thing in the world I wanted to do was to get you angry.  I just wanted to...”

But Laura never let him finish.  When they parted, Almanzo smiled and looked into her beautiful brown eyes. 

“Beth,” he whispered, caressing her cheek with his thumb, “My Beth.”

And he kissed her again, this time losing himself in her arms.  

And the dream was forgotten, well for now, at least.

 

A Wonderful Surprise A Little House story

 A Wonderful Surprise

This story is about Eliza Jane’s wedding to Nathan Jonas Harcourt, a wealthy man from Spring Valley, Minnesota.  There is a Fact and Fiction Section at the end of the story that will explain everything.  Story complete in one chapter.   

A Wonderful Surprise

Eliza Jane closed the door to the teacher’s house.  She was so excited that she forgot everything else and ran to the small bedroom at the end of the hall to tell Mannie and Laura.

But that had been a mistake as she soon found out.    

She couldn’t believe that Nathan Jonas Harcourt had proposed to her.  Her brother had mentioned it to her briefly, but she didn’t realize that Almanzo would get a hard time from a man she hardly knew.  Well, that wasn’t entirely true.  Everyone from Spring Valley knew Nate, as the townspeople called him.  He was never Mr. Harcourt or Nathan.  He wanted to be informal and friendly and asked everyone to call him Nate.  He owned the General Store in town and operated it as well.  He was always cordial to his customers, friends and neighbors, no matter where they came from.  Even Almanzo remembered him as being kind and generous.  He was never strange in any way at all, just a little odd.  Nate always wanted things done his own way.  He was outspoken and said anything that came into mind.  And he was a private man and a loner to boot.

But he always had a special place in his heart for Eliza Jane, now that she thought about it.  Both of them had thought it was nothing more than friendliness, until Mannie had that talk with him this morning.   He wanted to ask her to marry him, but approached Almanzo first before he said anything about it to Eliza.  Nate wanted Mannie’s permission and sought his blessing to marry her.  If Almanzo and his new wife Laura approved of him, Nate, then and only then, would he propose.

This was the last thing that Eliza expected.  She never thought that this would ever happen to her.  For the first time, she was happy that she had given the house to her brother. Perhaps Laura was right when she said that everything happens for a reason. In giving up the house to Mannie and Laura, she had gained a teaching position, new friends and, at the end of the week, a husband who wanted to spend his remaining years with her.

In the parlor, there was a small desk which held an equally small shelf.  These were some of her very important books.   Smiling, she pulled out the diary from among those books.  She opened it up to a blank page, found a pen and some ink and began to write.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

“You know, that was the strangest conversation,” Almanzo said, shaking his head as he plopped down on the bed.  “I’ve never met anybody that made me feel as if I knew nothing and he knew everything.”

“Are you talking about Nathan Jonas Harcourt?” Laura asked as she put the brush down on the dresser next to her.  She stood up and walked over to the bed where Manly was sitting.

Almanzo nodded.  “He made me so darn nervous.  I don’t know why.  He was a different person in Spring Valley.  He was so nice to everyone who walked into his store.  Everyone loved him, my parents, my brothers and sisters, his customers.”

“And apparently so does Eliza Jane.”

“Beth,” Almanzo said, standing up, “She had no idea he wanted to marry her.  He wouldn’t tell her until he spoke to me. He wanted to speak with you next, but I told him that he didn’t have to because you would agree with me. He made all the plans, the wedding is set for Friday.  He’s wants to marry her before we leave to go back to Walnut Grove on Sunday. For some reason, he wants us to be there.”

“How long does he know her, Manly?”

Almanzo shook his head.  “Not even a week, not counting that he was smitten with her when we all lived in Spring Valley and that was way before Eliza Jane and I left for a teaching position away from our parent’s farm.”

“Smitten?” Laura said, leaning forward in the chair she was sitting in.  “I thought he was married with six children.”

 “He was, Beth,” Almanzo said, looking at her.  “He lost his wife in childbirth seven years ago. He was lonely and he was looking for a companion.  That was the talk around town.”

“And now he’s going after your sister?  Manly, there are so many things wrong here, he barely knows her, he doesn’t love her and then there’s the age…”

“Beth?” he said smiling.  He wrapped his arms around her.   “We had that conversation right after he proposed this afternoon. Remember? “   

 “Of course I do, Manly,” Laura answered him.  She looked up at Almanzo as he swayed her back and forth in his arms.  “We were in Minnie and Tom’s finished bedroom helping Eliza Jane with her lesson plan for Monday.”

Almanzo smiled widely and nodded his head. “Nate and I were in Tom’s study.  Nate wanted to talk to me first.  He wanted my permission and blessing before he asked her.  I asked if they were in love and he told me that it was more for companionship than anything else.  He has money, Beth.  He owns and operates the town livery.  He promised me he’d take care of her when I asked him what his intentions were.   I started talking about their age difference and then I realized that age doesn’t really matter if two people are in love.  And I couldn’t believe that you agreed with me.”

“Why?  Should it matter?” she asked smiling.

“We’re ten years apart, Beth and, as I told your father, the difference in our ages has nothing to do with it.  All I know is that I love you; I don’t care how old you are.   You’re my Beth and you’ll always be my Beth. “

“And nothing will ever break us apart, Manly,” Laura answered, smiling at him.

“Beth, Almanzo whispered, pulling her close.     

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Laura’s Remembrance Book

September 4, 1885

Today Eliza Jane Wilder married Nathan Jonas Harcourt.  Eliza Jane didn’t have anything really fancy to wear, so Minnie offered to let Eliza Jane borrow her grey wedding suit.  She accepted the offer with a nod and a smile and asked if I could alter it so that it would fit her better. Nate went with Eliza’s wishes to have a small and private ceremony.   As it turned out, there was no time for a big one, which is what he originally wanted.   Nate wanted Almanzo to be the best man, but now Manly and I will be there to witness the ceremony with the Martin’s standing by.  Since the extra guest room at Tom’s ranch had been completed, Tom has asked us to move our things over there and into the new bedroom. This would give Eliza and Nate some time to spend their special night alone. Tom also successfully persuaded Nate to have the wedding at the teacher’s house instead of in town at the Reverend Scott's house.  He told us it would better for all concerned if we kept it private.

Tom and Minnie also convinced us to stay until Sunday and leave after church services were over.  

 As requested, Manly gave away his sister, turned and went to join me, but there were surprises in store and they were just about to begin.   

“Now, Mr. and Mrs. Wilder” the Reverend explained, “you'll stand where you are and Minnie and Tom will stand on your left. I had thought that a triple ceremony would be too much, but Tom insisted on it."

No one knew this was going to happen.  Later, when Nate asked the Reverend if he knew, he nodded his head and explained. “It had been Minnie’s idea, Mr. Harcourt, she didn’t mean for anyone to take her seriously.”

“What was it, a joke?” 

“Not exactly a joke, but a dream of Minnie’s.  She said she often wondered what a triple ceremony would be like.  The next thing I knew, Tom pulled me aside and asked if it could be done.  “Of course,” I answered, smiling.  ‘I don’t think it’ll be a problem.’  I couldn’t believe I was performing a triple ceremony.“ Reverend Scott smiled.  “Tom told me she wanted it to be a surprise.  She didn’t want anyone to know.  So I kept the secret.  Why do you ask?”

But Nate never answered him. He frowned, shook his head and just walked away.  

We did find out later that Nate didn't like the idea; after all, it was their wedding.  It was Eliza Jane who loved it though.  She called it ‘a wonderful surprise’ and was talking about it all night.  And Nate finally gave in and accepted the idea.

All in all, it was a beautiful wedding day.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Nate and Eliza Jane Harcourt lived and worked in Currie until a teaching position opened in Minneapolis two months later. At Nate's urging, Eliza Jane ended her assignment and moved to Minneapolis. Nate's death six months later would be devastating to Eliza and to help forget, she plunged into her teaching. She continued teach in Minneapolis however until her brother's stroke in the winter of 1886 when she stayed in Walnut Grove for almost six months.  Eliza Jane returned to Minneapolis and continued teaching.  She took several teaching seminars, one in Arizona where Laura introduced her to Mortimer Carstairs who took a liking to her. When the seminar was over, she invited Mort to join her in Minneapolis and to see if he could get a job there.  The two eventually got married, but the marriage didn't last. It was then that she decided to move down to Crowley, Louisiana.

Fact vs Fiction

There was no Minnie Trimble Martin or Thomas Martin. Minnie is taken from the Little House episode, "Sweet Sixteen" from Season Six. Thomas Martin is my creation only.

 Nathan Jonas Harcourt is loosely based on Thomas Jefferson Thayer, a wealthy, twice married merchant with six children. Eliza Jane married Thomas at age 42. She gave birth to a baby boy in 1894 and would name him Walcott "Wilder" Thayer. Thomas Jefferson Thayer would die in 1899 and his entire estate would go to Etta, his daughter from a previous marriage.

After his death, she moved down to Louisiana. It was during this period that Rose would live with her.

 In 1904, Eliza Jane married Maxwell Gordon.  The two would separate later on. She died on June 1, 1930 and is buried in Lafayette, Louisiana. 

 

 

The Newlyweds A Little House fanfic

The Newlyweds

When Laura finds two wires on the kitchen table that belong to Eliza Jane, she shows them to Almanzo who goes into his sister's room to talk about them, but Eliza wants to share the story with Laura too. This story covers what happened.  Story complete in one chapter. 

Almanzo was sitting out on the front porch of the Wilder farm in his favorite chair.  He was supposed to be inside getting Laura ready for what Eliza was about to tell her, but he just wasn’t sure how to bring this whole topic up.  He was still upset about the entire situation himself.  In fact, he knew the minute he saw Beth standing there in front of him, that he was going to lose it.

Well, it was now or never, Almanzo told himself as he stood up.  Pull yourself together and go.  How hard was this going to be?  Eliza Jane told him that she would explain everything.

He hoped.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

 How long is he going to be?  Laura asked herself as she put away the supper dishes.  What the heck could they possibly be talking about?  It all sounded pretty clear to her, all you had to do was read those telegrams and you knew what was going on, right?

She walked out of the kitchen into the dining room as she headed for the stairs.  She was about to climb them when she heard the front door slam shut.  

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

“Laura?”

She knew the minute he called her by her real name that there was trouble ahead.

She looked up to find Almanzo staring back at her, his mouth set in a frown, looking as if he was going to cry.

“Manly?” she said, as he ran to her and buried his face in her shoulder.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, as she held him in her arms.  “What did she say? Tell me.”

Almanzo pulled back and looked in her eyes.   “She wants me to wait. She wants to share what she told me with you.  She thought you might be upstairs.”

“Wait?  Wait for what?” Laura frowned.  “Manly, she kept quiet about all this.  She didn’t say one word.  She sent us out with eight chicken and egg sandwiches and some potato salad only to get stuck in the rain.  We ended up sleeping in the barn because it was coming down in torrents so that….”

“Yes, Laura, I’m sorry,” Eliza Jane said, as Laura looked up.  Almanzo turned to face her. “I was worried about you two, but I needed the time alone.  I had no idea where the two of you were last night and I was worried.”

Laura frowned, looked at Almanzo, then at Eliza Jane and then back to Almanzo. 

“Alone?  You needed to be alone?  Why couldn’t you just tell us, Eliza Jane?”

 Almanzo was staring at her.  “Just listen to her, Beth.  Then we can talk, alright?”

“But Manly, she….”

“Beth, let’s all sit down and get this over with.  We’ve got a lot to discuss.”

 XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

“Go on, Sis, we’re listening,” Almanzo came out of the kitchen with three china cups and placed them in the center of the table.  He took the chair next to Laura, opposite the kitchen.  He placed an arm around her.  The two of them watched as Eliza brought in a teapot.  She placed in the center of the table, took the chair closest to the kitchen and began pouring cups of tea for everyone.

“There are scones in the oven.  I made them yesterday while I was waiting…”

Her voice trailed as she slid both cups toward Laura and Almanzo.  No one made a move, no one said a word.  

 “As I told Mannie,” she began, looking at Laura, “There was never anything between Harve and me.  I wanted there to be, but I was wrong.”  Eliza looked at her brother. 

“The lie started the night I came home late, Almanzo.  It started when you asked me where I was. I was so angry that I blurted out the first thing that came into my head. There was no Harve, he wasn’t smitten with me and he didn’t invite me to a social because there was none. I did go to Sleepy Eye to tell him that I loved him, but he told me that he was getting married and that he was moving to St. Louis. I was so embarrassed that I left him in the middle of the street.  I drove around the prairie for hours until I got tired and fell asleep. “

Laura looked at Manly, but he was already staring at her, his arm still around her shoulders.

Eliza was watching both them.  She turned to her brother.  “Almanzo, please do me a favor, I think the scones are all warmed up.  Can you go get them and put them on the table? “

“Sure, Sis,” Almanzo said and got up from his chair.  He wandered into the kitchen. 

Eliza Jane turned to Laura and continued. “I thought because Mannie knew the both of us so well, he’d pick up on my lie, but he didn’t.  And I was kind of surprised he didn’t.  So I kept the lie going.  The only time I changed my mind was when you said you were going to stay in Radnor and not come back to visit Walnut Grove.  I had to do something to get you two back together.  I couldn’t stand to see the two of you apart.  You two were meant to be together, everyone could see it.  And so I got to thinking.  Mannie told me that he thought it was time we lived our lives apart and he was right.”

“Eliza Jane,” Laura started to say, but her sister in law shook her head.      

 “No, Laura, let me finish.”

Almanzo walked back in with the scones, which he put on a blue china plate.  He placed it in the center next to the teapot and sat down again.

 “And that was when I decided to send a wire to Mr. Williams.  I asked about a position in Minneapolis.  He told me there was nothing, at least not yet, but that there might be one in Currie.  Minnie was leaving and they’d need a replacement and there was no one to take the position.  Those were the wires that you found. It would be temporary and was I interested in it?  I wrote back and told him that I would be.   I did wire him back the day you left for Radnor.  That was the day I convinced Mannie to go after you.  After you left on the stage, Mr. Williams told me that I had the job and that I’d start on Monday.   He asked about Radnor and I told him I’d get back to him.”

She turned to Almanzo.  “I knew that you’d catch up with her, Mannie.  You were so happy when I told you that you could have the house and get married that I wired Mr. Williams and told him to start looking for someone else.”

“So you waited until I went after Laura,” Almanzo said, looking at her.

Eliza Jane nodded her head. “I know how much you love one another and I wanted the two of you to be happy. I wanted you to have the house as my wedding present.  I couldn’t bear to watch the two of you not speaking. So I told you that I was marrying Harve. It was the only way I could get you two back together.”   

 Almanzo turned to find Laura staring at him.  He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. 

“I didn’t know how I was going to tell either of you the truth, but I had to sooner or later. I just didn’t want people feeling sorry for me anymore.  I was thinking about writing, Almanzo, but I wasn’t even sure what I was going to write.   I never expected you to find those two telegrams.  ”

The silence between the three of them lingered until Laura found it unbearable.  She looked over at her husband, who she found was already staring back at her. 

Laura stood up, ran to her sister in law and took her in her arms with Almanzo looking on.  When they broke apart, she kissed her cheek. 

“Thank you for everything, Eliza Jane.  Thank you so much.  We love you.”

Eliza Jane smiled as Almanzo stood up and walked over to where his wife and his sister stood. He extended his arms and swept them both into a bear hug. 

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Almanzo was sitting outside watching the stars shine brightly in the prairie sky.  The meeting between the newlyweds and the sister in law was over and everything was straightened out.  They would still have the dinner tonight at Nellie’s place, but they would have to stop off at the Ingalls place and explain why and the reason that it was changed.   Then tomorrow, it was agreed that Almanzo and Laura would drive her out to Currie to get settled. 

He kept looking toward the sky, but the only thing he could see was Laura.  She was like no other woman he had ever known.  She was outgoing, feisty, smart and witty. She could write,  teach, sew and sing.  She loved horses, knew about farming and how to make him happy. And she could cook. Boy, could she cook.  She was special and so was their relationship. There wasn’t any other woman that he ever met that came close to Beth, none whatsoever.

It was a miracle he found her out here on the prairie.  She was everything he could have hoped for and more.

And he was never going to let her go, not again, anyway.

“It’s a clear night, Manly.  You can almost see every star up there.” 

He heard her voice beside him and stood up.  He turned to face her.

“You’re the only star I see on the horizon, Beth.”

He smiled and pulled her close. 

“Thank you,” he whispered.  “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”

Laura smiled as Almanzo released her. “She wanted to do something for herself and for us.  She wanted a change and she didn’t want to be alone.” 

“She won’t be.  She’s got herself a new job and a place to live.  So far all is well.” Almanzo smiled.  “She even found out what happened with Radnor. “

She nodded.  “I guess there was no harm done, after all.  Mr. Williams told your sister that he had given the job to the woman who came in second.  He said he wanted to be fair to everyone. I wonder something though, Manly, do you think she ‘ll hold on to the Currie assignment?”

But Manly wasn’t listening, he was in a daze.  He hadn’t heard a word that she said.  All he saw was her face, her beautiful brown eyes in particular. 

Laura frowned.  She looked into his eyes and watched his face light up.  He picked up his hand and caressed her cheek with his thumb.

“Manly?”

“Beth,” he whispered, “My Beth.”

And he brought his lips down to meet hers.