Chapter 72

Nettie was in such a state of shock that at first she didn't hear the bell over the pounding of her heart. When Eli said he had to go, she nodded absently and spent a moment sorting out what had happened. He paused at the door. Looking even more heart-shatteringly handsome than usual.
"Tell me yes, Nettie. I don't want to go while this is hanging in the air."
Time to grow up and be a big girl, Net. She walked over to him at the door and kissed him hard on the lips. "Yes. Now stay safe so we don't have to postpone the wedding."
"Thank God." He kissed her back, then turned and ran.
Nettie sank back in her chair. Dear lord, had she really accepted a proposal of marriage? From Eli? She touched her kiss-swollen lips. It seemed she had.
Part of her wanted to whoop with joy, and another part was terrified. Eli didn't believe in love. Nettie did. Worse yet, it seemed she'd fallen in love with him. Would she be able to stand that for the rest of her life, knowing her love was unrequited?
Bah. It didn't matter. She could go to Africa or Australia or the North Pole and still love him. At least here, she'd be able to see him, talk with him, hold him and...the idea of having children with him made her melt inside. Yes. She could manage. And if she was going to be Eli Lawson's wife, she was going to be the best wife she could possibly be. She moved into the library to find that etiquette book he'd mentioned. Time to memorize the blasted thing.
Instead she found Diana, casually pretending to read a magazine. "You don't garden," Nettie reminded her. "Nice try though. Did you hear everything?"
Diana made a face and tossed the magazine aside. "Not much. So tell me - did you accept?"
As Nettie drew closer, Diana's eyes grew wide. "You did. You kissed him - or rather he kissed you. You're engaged." She squealed the last bit and stood, flinging herself at Nettie and squeezing her tightly. "We're going to be sisters."
"I guess we are." Nettie eased Diana back into her chair then slumped into the one across from it, still dazed. "I always wanted a sister."
"I knew it. I knew from the day he brought you home that you were someone special to Eli. He was crazy about you, and you've been crazy about him. This is wonderful." Diana rooted through the pile of magazines and came up with a fashion one. "I think there might be some wedding gowns in here."
"Whoa. I don't think I'm ready for that, yet." Nettie held up her hand. "How about we ask Mrs. V to get us some tea for starters?"
"Tea." Diana smiled. "And cookies. That's one advantage of being in the family way. For once in my life, I can eat all the sweets I like." Eli was too courteous to his servants to have bell-pulls, so Diana ducked out into the kitchen to ask the housekeeper for tea.
Nettie took advantage of the moment to catch her breath. That turned out to be a mistake, because it gave her time to realize Eli was at a fire. She was marrying a man who literally risked his life on a regular basis. She couldn't ask him to stop, though. If she made him change, he wouldn't be the man she loved. Nettie resigned herself to a lot of time spent at home, worrying.
Maybe she could form a firemen's wives' auxiliary. The could collect food and clothing for any family whose home was destroyed, maybe raise money to rent rooms until the families rebuilt or found a new home. It would be a way for her to contribute to the cause Eli was so passionate about. And when the bell rang, perhaps the wives could get together at the firehouse to provide coffee and sandwiches when the men returned. Mostly, they could worry together.
That was a far better notion to think about than whether she wanted beading or lace on her wedding dress.
They had a quiet supper without Eli. Nettie was adamant that Diana not tell the VanCleves about the engagement, feeling that was Eli's prerogative. Having not found an etiquette book, she borrowed several of Diana's magazines to study. Based on the articles she read, there was much more to being a wealthy housewife than she would have believed.
Diana had gone to bed when Eli returned, covered in soot, with one hand bandaged. Nettie ran to him and wrapped her good arm around his waist, hugging him tightly. "How badly are you hurt?"
"Just a graze from a broken window," he assured her, using both hands to hold her close. "Doc already took a look at it. No stitches, only iodine and a bandage for a few days."
"Thank God." She instinctively tilted her head up for his kiss. He obliged, taking her mouth in a fierce, possessive way he hadn't that afternoon. Nettie couldn't get enough. She even tried sliding her own tongue along his, tasting and feeling the texture of his mouth. Even flavored with smoke and strong coffee, she loved it.
Later, he sat on the stone hearth, with her perched on his knee, his head bent against hers.
She knew he needed a meal and a bath, but she desperately wanted to prolong this moment. "Where was the fire?"
"An abandoned timber warehouse by the pier - Brennan Brothers." He twirled her braid in his fingers.
"That's where my pa used to work." They'd shut down operations about a year before her mother's death. Pa had lost his fingers to one of the saw blades. Though they'd offered to keep him on, he'd never gone back. Mama had taken in some sewing. After she died, Nettie started working at the bookstore.
Eli kissed her cheek. "A lot of men lost their jobs when the timber mill closed. Most of them found work somewhere else - fishing or the railroad, one of the factories in Grand Rapids or Muskegon. They didn't rely on their underage daughters for support."
"I know." She'd been away long enough to get her eyes open about Pa. "Eli - I don't want him at our wedding. I'm sure he'd find some way to spoil it."
"Would you rather elope? I wouldn't mind that. I'm not so keen on getting my own family together on a day that's supposed to be special for us."
She leaned against him, glad they were on the same page. "Not an elopement, exactly. Maybe something here, in the parlor, with Diana and the Websters and VanCleves." Eli was fond of his employees, so even though they hadn't really warmed up to Nettie, she wouldn't exclude them. "Your mother of course, too, if you want."
"I'll think about it. Now sit here for a minute. I've got something for you." He brushed a kiss against her hair and leapt to his feet, stopping in front of a painting on the opposite wall.
"It can wait. You need to wash up and have something to eat." She watched him slide the painting aside and then open the safe behind it.
He came back to her with a small velvet box. "My grandmother's. Now their marriage was happy. Lasted forty-eight years, until he died. Afterward, she didn't fade away. She played cards with us and hide-and-seek. Then one night she died in her sleep with a smile on her face."
"What a lovely story." Nettie gazed at the pair of rings the open box revealed. The engagement ring held a modest diamond, surrounded by tiny blue sapphire chips. The wedding ring was a slender band of matching gold. "Eli, they're beautiful."
"My mother's parents didn't start with a lot of money. He offered her a new, bigger one every year, and she always refused. I thought you'd like it." He took the engagement ring out and gently placed it on her finger - where it slid right up to the cast and stopped.
"I'll wear it on the other hand for now," she said with a warm glow in her heart. She held out her right hand and he slipped it onto her third finger. "I love it. It's a perfect fit."
"Meant to be." He lifted her hand and kissed the palm. "You don't want something bigger?"
"Not in a million years." She caught his hand and kissed it. "Now go upstairs and clean up. I'll warm up the dinner Mrs. V left out for you."
"Already acting like a wife." He smiled and ran up the steps two at a time.