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It was a hot sultery evening and all the boys were gathered around Teaspoon on the porch. The days to Kid and Lou's wedding drew closer and closer. Anyone could tell that Kid was getting very nervous and at the urging of the other riders, he began to ask Teaspoon about his many marriage. Surely someone who had been married so many times could answer some of the questions that were running through Kid's head. He wanted desperately to hear about Teaspoon's first marriage. Was he nervous, how did he know that she was the one, why did it end? So many questions and he wanted the answers. Teaspoon never mentioned his first wife to any of the riders and they all couldn't help but wonder why.
After a considerable amount of teasing, pleading and downright begging, Teaspoon agreed to tell the boys of his first marriage. All ears were on him while he put his hands behind his head and leaned back in his chair. With a long, deep labored breathe he began to tell the story of a warm summer day back in 1831. They could all see the sadness that came across his face only to followed by a look of peacefullness that they had never seen before. He began slowly as if not to forget anything. Closing his eyes he started his journey back to the happiest time of his younger years. He was around sixteen or seventeen when his yearning for adventure took him far away from the place he called home. He had been traveling for days on end stopping at all the little towns he came across. He had made his way up to the Michigan territory and was about to head back home to Texas when he stopped in a little place called Rileyville. The town was putting on a fair to help raise money to rebuild the church that had burned down. All the ladies of the town had fixed picnic lunches and they were being auctioned off to the highest bidder. The lucky men that won the lunches also got to have the lunch with the young lady whom had prepared it. A breathtakinly beautiful young red headed lady had caught his eye. Her eyes were the deepest green that warmed the cockles of his heart. Her smile was so friendly and calming at the same time. He decided right then that he would bid on her basket and enjoy a lunch with this vision of lovliness. "Going once, going twice," yelled the auctioneer as he banged his gavel for the last time, "sold to this gentleman up front wearing the blue shirt. Congratulations Mr?" "Hunter, Aloysius Hunter," he said as he paid the auctioneer his money. "Congratulations Mr. Hunter. Adeline is one fine cook and I'm sure you will enjoy what she has prepared for lunch." "I'm sure I will," he agreed as he turned to her and tipped his hat. "Miss Adeline would you do me the honor of having this lunch that you have prepared with me over there by the pond under that maple tree?" "Why certainly Mr. Hunter, I would like that very much," she replied with a blush beginning to show on her face. Taking the basket ever so gently out of her hands, they headed down the path to the pond. Upon arriving under the maple tree, Adeline quickly got out the blanket that she had packed and spread it out for them to sit on. She ever so graciously sat out all the food in the basket and they began to have lunch. "You aren't from around here are you Mr. Hunter?" Adeline inquired. "No mam, I'm from Texas and you can call me Aloysius," he said with the pride Texians have. "Texas is a long way away from here Aloysius. What brings you to these parts?" "Well Miss Adaline, I wanted to travel and see the world. I don't know if Texas is where I want to stay all my life. It will always be home but I wanted to experience all life had to offer, so here I am," he said boastfully. "Oh please call me Addy. That is what my family and friends call me," Adaline explained. "Well Addy, this here lunch is about the best I've ever had. What's that there we have for dessert?" Aloysius asked bobbing his head to the side to get a better view. "Oh it's my special cherry pie. You do like cherry pie don't you?" "I don't think I've ever had the pleasure to taste a cherry pie. If it's anything like lunch so far, I'm know I'm gonna love it." Addy carefully cut a slice of the cherry pie and put it on his plate. She was so hoping that this handsome young man was going to like it. She was honored that he had chosen to bid on her basket. All the other girls seemed to be jealous as not many strangers came along. To have him bid and win her basket for lunch was so thrilling and exciting. She knew that she was the envy of all the other girls. "Oh my goodness...." "WHAT'S WRONG? Don't you like it?" she nervously asked. "Like it, I love it. I have never tasted such sweetness and tartness at the same time. These here cherries, where do you get them? Do they grow in a field?" "They grow on trees. You have to pick them when they are ripe. If you pick them too soon they will be very sour and if you wait too late. they will be all mushy." "We don't have anything like this in Texas." ************************** Aloysius knew that he had found his new home. He knew he would marry and spend the rest of his life with this lovely lady called Addy. This was also the feelings that Addy had for him. Aloysius got himself a room at the local boarding house and began working in the stables. A job he didn't much like but had to take as there were no others available at the time. He had soon saved up enough money to put a down payment on a little farm just outside of town. After his work was done at the stables, he and Addy would go out there to work on what needed fixing. There was a lot to do before they married but neither minded. They would be together and happy forever. "I do declare Aloysius, I often wonder if you really love me or you just love my cherry pies!" Addy said teasing him as he dug into a pie. "You know cotton-pickin well that I love you!" he replied as he grabbed her waist, "the cherry pies are just a little something extra. Promise me one thing, you'll always cook me cherry pies." "Oh you know I will Mr. Hunter," she said teasingly as she kissed him. "Just try to eat it with a fork instead of a spoon." "But it's so good I want to get every crumb! I can't do that with a fork," he tried explaining to her. "Well Mr. Hunter, if you are gonna continue to eat my pies with a spoon, I think I will call you Spoon Hunter," Addy said as she started giggling and teasing Aloysius. "No wait a minute, Spoon doesn't quite sound right. How about Teapsoon Hunter, Aloysius Teaspoon Hunter." "Now cut that out, my name is Aloysius, not Teaspoon." "Yes, I think I like that, I like it very much! Teaspoon it is then." she said as she threw her head back in the way that she always did when she knew that she had won. As Addy kept teasing Aloysius, he knew that his new nickname would stick. He took her gently in his arms and held her. Looking in her face, he could only see happiness and love. He was indeed a lucky man. ************************** It was the day of the wedding and Teaspoon was mighty nervous. He had began to wonder if he would be able to provide for Addy the way she deserved. Could he protect her, keep her safe? Loving her was no problem, in fact that was the easiest thing he had ever done. Never had he met anyone so full of life, so full of spunk. She was everything he had ever dreamed of and today she would become his wife. The ceremony was a beautiful one. It was spring and fresh flowers were everywhere in the church. The whole town had been invited to the wedding and all but a few had shown up. As Addy made her way down the aisle, Teaspoon was breathless at the beautiful vision coming towards him. As they held each other's hand the preacher began the ceremony. "Do you Aloysius take Adeline to have and to hold forever and ever?" "I do." "And do you Adeline take Aloysius to have and to hold forever and ever?" "Oh yes, I do." "Then by the power vested in me by God and the territory of Michigan, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride Mr. Hunter." Teaspoon held his bride close and kissed her like he had never kissed her before. Life couldn't have been any grander than it was at this very moment. At the reception there was all kinds of goodies. The most spectacular was the wedding cake that Addy's mother and a few of the other town's ladies had made. There was music and dancing all around the church yard. "Teaspoon, this is the happiest day of my life. No one has ever made me feel so happy, so loved. I am so glad you came into my life. What would I do without you?" Addy had tears running down her cheeks as she danced with her new husband. Gently wiping the tears off her cheeks, Teaspoon whispered to his new bride, "I love you so much Addy. And don't you worry, I ain't going nowhere no time soon. As a matter of fact, I think it's time to say our thanks and good-byes to everyone. We can head on home, our home." "Do you know how nice that sounds Teaspoon? Our home. We'll fill it with plenty of love and soon plenty of kids." "Well then, we need to get started on that," Teaspoon replied with that look in his eyes. He slowly turned around to tip his hat to the crowd that had watched them dance. Yelling thank yous to the crowd, he briskly swept his new bride up in his arms and carried her off. ************************** The fall days had started getting colder and winter wasn't far away. By all signs, it would be a hard winter this year. It was almost Thanksgiving and the town was a scurry with all the women preparing a feast for the townspeople to share. Teaspoon was doing his part by chopping wood and hunting for game. He had even bagged the biggest turkey this year. Addy was so proud of her husband, he was fitting into the township so well. She knew that their first Thanksgiving would be special. After all the festivities were over, Addy and Teaspoon went home to have a quiet evening. Addy had saved Teaspoon a cherry pie since she knew that this would be the last one until the trees were full of ripe cheeries again. "Ohhhh Teaspoon," she said in a teasing manner. "Is that a cherry pie I smell? Could my darling wife have saved me a slice?" "I not only saved you a slice, but the whole thing." Addy came into Teaspoon's view holding a spoon in one hand and the pie in the other. "Come and get it if you can." They sat in front of the fire that night and shared the whole pie. Each one giving thanks for all that they had and would have. Their world was perfect and they were so in love, so happy. They sat for hours talking about the past few months and how lucky they were to have met. They also talked about the future. Addy wanted a lot of children running around the house and Teaspoon was more than happy to oblige her. As the fire sizzled and crackled, so did the love and passion that they shared. ************************** The days had grown shorter and the skies had hues of grey, black and red. Teaspoon could tell that it was gonna be a cold, hard winter. It wouldn't be long before snow would blanket the ground and the icy crystals would hang from the trees and houses. Christmas was only a couple days away and it would be so nice to wake up Christmas morning and see snow. Addy hadn't been feeling herself and Teaspoon was worried about her. She just wasn't her spunky self and he had been begging her for days to go see Doc Evans. She had told him not to worry that everything was allright. Finally giving in to his constant begging, she agreed to go with him to town and see the Doc. When she came out of the Doc's office, Teaspoon could see a change about her. She was glowing but all she would tell him was that she was allright. She insisted that they go their seperate ways in order to get each other a gift. They soon met back in front of the Doc's office and headed home. Not a word was said, but Teaspoon could sense that something was up with his wife. Christmas morning was finally here. Addy had gotten up early and was standing in front of the large window in the kitchen. Snow had indeed fell through the night and everything was covered in white. "Good morning my love. It's right chilly in here, I'll have to stir that fire up and get it going again." Teaspoon said as he walked over to his wife and wrapped his arms around her. "It snowed last night Teaspoon. Isn't it just beautiful outside? "she informed him, "I'm so glad it snowed. It's just not Christmas round here without snow." "I reckon I had better go out and check on the horses and cattle and I need to get this fire to going again so we won't freeze to death." he said shivering as the thoughts of going out in the snow ran through his mind. "I'll fix your breakfast while you do that and then we can give each other our gifts. We have a busy day and I want to give you yours before we leave for town." Teaspoons eyes widened and sparkled like a kid with candy. After getting the fire to roaring again, he rushed out to get his chores done so he would have a bit more time to spend with Addy before they had to leave. She began mixing up the biscuits and putting on the coffee. In no time Teaspoon had finished all his chores and they had both eaten breakfast. They both sat in front of the roaring fire as each one exchanged their gifts. Addy opened hers first. It was a beautiful ring that Teaspoon had gotten for her. It was silver and turquoise in the shape of a heart. He had written his father and asked him to get one of the local indian tribes in Texas to make it for him. He also had bought Addy a new dress made from the finest silk. It was a light blue dress and had ruffles all over. Addy loved both the gifts but was very anxious for Teaspoon to open his gift. He ripped into it like an excited child. He couldn't understand what it meant when he pulled out an small knitted sweater and a pair of bootys. As he looked at Addy with confusion on his face, she gently took his hand and began to say. "You will need these to put on your son or daughter next fall when it starts to get chilly," she whispered to him. As his face gleamed with joy he asked her, "Are you telling me that we are gonna be having a baby?" "Yes Teaspoon! Doc Evans says that the baby will come around June or July. Are you happy? "You know I am. We done made ourselves a baby. I'm so happy I could dance." he said as tears of joy started swelling in his eyes. "We gotta tell your folks, and I'll write mine and tell them. I'm gonna have to be adding on another bedroom to the house and I'll need to make a bed and.........." "Settle down Teaspoon. There will be plenty of time to tell everyone and to do all that." Addy tried to calm him. "I just want to spend this day with you here in our home where it's warm and full of love." Hugging her ever so gently Teaspoon agreed with her and they sat back down on the settee in front of the fire. They were gonna have a baby and nothing made either of them happier. The rest of the world just seemed to slip away as they cuddled by the fire. Teaspoon would put his hand on Abby's stomach and pat it gently saying all the while that he loved the little life inside. ************************** It had been a hard winter indeed but now the cold, freezing air was giving way to warmer days as spring finally approached the small town of Rileyville. Addy was in her sixth month and was getting bigger with every passing day. She had been sickly the whole winter and stayed inside most of the time. Teaspoon had waited on her hand and foot and was more protective of her now than ever. She had become restless and wanted to get out in the fresh air and feel the warmth of the sun on her face. They would take afternoon walks when it was the warmest. It seemed to do Addy a lot of good getting out walking. Her color was getting back to normal and she had started eating more. "I couldn't be more happier Teaspoon," Addy told her husband as they sat swinging on the poarch one afternoon. "I know I haven't been the easiest to get along with these past few months. I am feeling better now though, I'm feeling stronger and the baby is moving all around. It's like he is ready to come out and meet the world." "Nothing makes me feel better than to hear you say that Addy," Teaspoon began, "As a matter of fact, I don't think I can recall seeing you looking any better. Having babies sure does agree with you." "I feel so fine that I think I will cook dinner for you tonight. You have been doing all the cooking and cleaning here lately that I feel so guilty and you deserve to rest some. I've been resting too much and it's time for me to get back to work." "Do you think that's a good idea Addy? Doc Evans said for you to take it easy. Maybe we should wait until he tells you it is allright for you to start doing chores again," Teaspoon tried reasoning with her. "I'm fine Teaspoon. Now don't you worry, I know how I feel and I feel good." Sitting back and relaxing felt great for Teaspoon. He had been doing so much that he hadn't realized just how tired he had become. Doing all his chores and taking care of Addy was beginning to wear on him. Addy could see the tiredness in his eyes and that made her worry. She was thankful that she was feeling better and could get back to helping in her share around the house. "Dinner was wonderful Addy!" Teaspoon told his wife. "Why thank you Mr. Hunter! I'm so glad you liked it. It felt real good to get back in my kitchen and to cook. The smells didn't even make me sick," she told Teaspoon as she started clearing the table. "Now go on in the living room and sit be the fire, I'll join you in a bit." Teaspoon was more than happy to sit by the fire and rest some after such a fine meal. It wasn't long before Addy joined him and they both sat there quietly until it was time for bed. Sleep came very easy for Teaspoon that night. He felt as if everything would be allright now and that he could finally relax and get a good nights sleep. Addy was normally more sick at night and that meant a lot of sleepless nights for them both. Addy was a little restless that night and had decided to get her some warm milk. Getting up out of bed suddenly woke Teaspoon up. She reassured him that all was well and the she was just going to get some milk. He laid back down and was almost asleep when he heard a loud bump. "TEASPOON," Addy yelled at the top of her lungs. Jumping quickly out of bed and running into the kitchen, Teaspoon was met with a frightening site. His wife stood there with blood all over her nightgown and floor. The milk pitcher lay broken on the floor in front of her. At first Teaspoon thought she had just gotten cut from breaking the pitcher. Soon he realized that there was way too much blood and he made his way over to her. "Go get Doc Evans Teaspoon. Somethings wrong, somethings terrible wrong," Addy cried to her husband. "Let's get you in bed and then I'll go get him. Are you hurting anywhere?" Teaspoon asked her with fear in his voice. "No I'm not in any pain, but somethings not right Teaspoon." Teaspoon got Addy in the bed and hurried to get Doc Evans. It seem to take forever to get back to her. Teaspoon was worried and so afraid for his wife and baby. Doc Evans had been in there a long time and by now Addy's mother, Francis had arrived. Teaspoon was sick with worry and not hearing anything from the Doc or Francis made things worse. Finally after 4 long hours, Francis came out followed by Doc Evans. Teaspoon could tell by the look on Francis' face that things weren't good. Doc Evans sat down beside Teaspoon and began to tell him the news. "Teaspoon," he began, "Addy lost the baby. I tried desperately to save him but I just couldn't" "What about Addy? Is she gonna be allright Doc? Please tell me she will be allright." "Son, I don't know. She has lost a lot of blood and I just don't know. I wish there were more I could do or more I could tell you but there isn't. She's in God's hands now. We'll just have to wait to see what the morning brings. If she's stronger by morning there is hope that she will make it. If not, then it's only a matter of time. Just keep her comfortable and let her rest. I'll be back in the morning to check on her." "Thanks Doc," Teaspoon said as he got up to shake his hand. By now the news had hit him and hit him hard. His son had died and now there was a possibility that the wife he loved so much would also die. Emotions overcome him and he slumped down in the chair and began sobbing freely. Francis had come over to comfort him and give him strength that she knew he would have to have. "You need to be strong son, if not for yourself, for Addy. She doesn't need to see you this way, it will only upset her." "I know and I want to be strong. I just don't know what I'll do if anything happens to her. We can always have more babies but there is only one Addy," he tried to explain as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'm going in and check on her. Get yourself straight and then come in, I know she wants to see you," Francis instructed Teaspoon as she gave him one last hug before going in the bedroom. Teaspoon sat there for a few minutes more wondering what he had done wrong. Was it his fault that Addy had lost the baby? He soon got up and went into the kitchen to clean his face. The broken milk jug was still in the floor. He figured he would clean it up in the morning. Now he just wanted to see his Addy. "Addy," he said softly as he entered the room, "Are you awake honey?" "Yes Teaspoon. Come over here to me. I've been waiting for you." As he made his way to the bed he could see just how frail and weak his lovely wife looked. She could barely lift her hand to his when he sat down beside her. She tried to talk but he stopped her and told her that she needed to save her energy. He laid down beside her and took her in his arms. He held her that way for hours until she woke. "Teaspoon, I have to tell you something," she mumbled. "Now Addy, you need your rest. We can talk in the morning." "No, I want to tell you something right now. I want to tell you how very much I love you. You have made me happier than I ever thought I could be. You are the best husband a wife could ever have." she said weakly. "Same here for me, I love you more than anything in this whole world." Teaspoon told her. "I don't want you to blame yourself for anything that's happened." "I don't like the way you are talking now Addy. Everything's going to be allright in the morning." She reached up to his face with her hand and rested it on his cheek. "Good-bye my love" is all she said as her hand gently fell down on her chest. Teaspoon just held her close rocking back and forth. He would not accept that his Addy was gone. Francis heard his sobs and came into the room. After finally getting him to let her go she wrapped her daughter up and gave her a kiss for the last time. Addy was gone and so was the dream that she and Teaspoon had shared. ************************** "That's a mighty moving story Teaspoon," Kid said wiping a tear from his eye."Well Kid, for a long time I was angry that Addy had left me. It took me a long time to figure out that she gave me something that I had never had before and that was love. She showed me how to love another person and not to be so selfish. I've been married five times since and I'll tell you, none of my other wives could take her place. They were all good women but they weren't my Addy. So son, don't be afraid of marrying Lou. You and her kinda remind me of me and Addy. We, like you two, were so much in love." Teaspoon told Kid in his fatherky way. "The loving is what comes easiest but all the rest just falls into place. You don't have anything to worry about." Lou and Rachel had been standing by the door listening to Teaspoons every word. Both had tears falling down their cheeks as they came out onto the poarch. They had seen a different side of Teaspoon that none of them knew existed. Lou ran over to Teaspoon and gave him a big hug as she knew it had helped Kid face his fears about them marrying. "Thank you Teaspoon.....and thank you too, Addy."
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