Hope Barbara Goss (novels to read txt) 📖

was pleased when Hope took it and patted it with her free hand. The gesture made him realize what a warm and caring person she was.

“I’m pleased to meet you, Mr. Townsend. I’ve heard so much about you.”

“Mr. Townsend? That will never do. You can call me Father or Joseph. You’re my daughter-in-law, now.” Joseph looked at Daniel and winked. “My son certainly has good taste.”

Hope smiled. “Thank you, Joseph. I’m an orphan, so calling you 'father' might be a bit awkward for me, but it isn’t personal.”

“Daniel never mentioned that,” Joseph said. “Well, you have a family now, such as it is. Me and Daniel. And it’s fine to call me Joseph.

“Have a seat, Hope.” Joseph turned to his son. “Daniel, would you go out and tell Sam we need to butcher the black heifer? We’ll have a feast this week to celebrate Hope’s coming home.”

Hope gave Daniel a worried look.

“You want me to do that now?” Daniel asked.

“Yes. I want to spend time with my daughter-in-law.”

Daniel shrugged and left the room.

Hope felt uneasy with the situation. She wished she’d asked Daniel exactly what he’d told Joseph. Had he mentioned the annulment?

“So,” Joseph said, “tell me about yourself.”

Hope filled him in on her background. Joseph nodded all the while.

Joseph patted her hand as it rested on the mattress. “Just think: someday you’ll have children, and you’ll have a houseful of family. You’ll also have more love than you can handle. It will make up for what you didn’t have in your youth. I bet you can’t wait to start a family.”

“I hadn’t even thought of that. I’m sure it will be nice… someday.”

“Ah, but you’re young yet. You have time.”

Joseph’s coughing started, and Hope became alarmed.

“Can I get you something?”

He was coughing too hard to answer. Hope stood and poured a cup of water from the pitcher on his dresser.

“Here, Joseph.”

He took a long drink and leaned back on his pillows. “Thank you.”

“I appreciate your letting me stay here until Daniel has my cottage built.”  Once she’d said it, she flinched inwardly—had he known about the cottage?

“I’m happy to have you and the chance to get to know you before… well, I’m just pleased to meet you.”

Hope felt totally uncomfortable talking about his demise. She liked the man, and she'd feel terrible when he passed. The last thing she wanted was to become attached to someone before they'd die. Still, if she could make his last days more enjoyable, then she could do this.

She looked at the man and saw that Daniel had Joseph’s bright, blue eyes and smile.

“Do you play checkers?”

Hope nodded. “Fair warning: I was the orphanage champion.”

“Oh, I do love a good challenge. Don’t let me win like Daniel does.”

Hope could understand Daniel letting him win. He was such a caring man. She wished things were different, and that they were in love.

Chapter Thirteen

“Daniel, I adore Hope,” Joseph said when Daniel joined him for breakfast. Hope hadn’t come down yet, or Daniel would have invited her, too.

“Father, now, don’t get too attached. Things might not work out for us.”

“I’m praying things will work out.” Joseph pushed his plate away. “I’m not at all hungry this morning.”

Daniel looked at his plate and shook his head. “You’re getting so thin, Father. Please, try to eat. At least eat the eggs.”

Joseph nibbled on the eggs and then reached for the muffin on his tray.

“You should eat the nourishing food first, Father.”

“I have a sweet tooth, and Esther bakes the best muffins. She puts one on my tray every morning.”

“That’s fine, but I’m here to make sure you eat good food, too.”

Joseph laughed. “I remember telling you the same thing years ago.”

“When did this illness start? You were fine when you left Kansas.”

“I stayed at a hotel in Portland until spring, when I got this land, I built the house, and started to farm and buy animals. I felt invigorated. I worked hard those first two years. I hired Esther and Sam since I couldn’t do it all alone. I needed Esther to do the laundry, clean, and cook, but they wanted to come to work as a pair, so I had Sam working with me on the farm. About three years later, I got short of breath, the coughing began, and I was bedridden in a matter of months.

“Fortunately, by then, Sam knew enough to run the farm.”

“What did the doctor say about your condition?”

“He’s baffled. He thinks the lungs just plain got tuckered out.  He asked if I smoked, but I never did.”

A soft knock on the door caused both men to turn toward it.

Hope walked in. “Good morning. I wondered where you were, Daniel.”

“Good morning,” the men said in accord.

Daniel stood. “Did you have breakfast?”

“Yes. I ate in the kitchen with Sam and Esther.”

“I’m so sorry,” Daniel said. “I should have waited for you, but—”

“No, it’s quite all right. I think eating with your father is a grand idea.”

“Watch out for her, Daniel—she’s a checker champion. She beat me two out of three games yesterday.”

Daniel smiled at Hope. “Well, I need to have a game with you, then.”

“Any time,” Hope said.

“How about right now?” Joseph said. “I don’t want to miss this.”

“Wait: I have an idea.” Daniel moved to the door. “I’ll be right back.”

When Daniel returned, he was carrying a large table. “I found this in the room I think was your office.”

“Yes. I ordered a desk from a catalog in town, but it arrived damaged. What a disappointment after waiting three months for it. I sent it back to the company and used the