lift a glass of beer or down a tankard of grog. She finally smiled and nodded. “All right. Don’t be too long.”
He jumped down and waved as Joshua got the wagon moving again. Then, as Mary Ann sensed the excitement of her family—even Nathan, normally hard to ruffle, was looking about eagerly—she forgot about taverns and men’s ways. She felt her own heart quicken a little at the thought of being in town. She laughed softly and poked at Joshua’s back. “It’s all right to hurry a little if you want, Joshua,” she said.
Getting more and more frustrated with each passing hour, Joshua took another deep swallow from his mug of stout, a dark beer brought over to America from Ireland. For almost an hour now he had tried every device he could think of to maneuver Lydia McBride away from her family and the other young men who constantly hovered around her. Twice he had managed to speak a quick word or two, but then almost instantly someone else would break in before they could really begin to talk.
One of the things which dug at Joshua the most was the way the young men surrounding her were dressed. There was no question but what they represented Palmyra’s elite. The one who spoke with her now looked like some peacock strutting in front of a flock of hens. He certainly had not come to help with the barn raising. He wore a double-breasted, knee-length frocked coat with rolled collar. At his throat was a white scarf, every fold carefully crafted. Long, pin-striped trousers were strapped under brightly polished boots. The felt top hat was, Joshua supposed, the latest style—the brim turned up at just the right angle and the crown flared out slightly wider than the base.
Joshua had once seen in a book a picture of a French dandy holding a kerchief to his nose and sniffing daintily at it. At any moment he expected this one to do the same. He looked away, keenly aware of the plainness of his own heavy trousers made of homespun and the boots scuffed and worn and lacking any polish whatever.
But almost immediately his eyes came back to watch Lydia. She was no less fashionably dressed, but on her it was stunning. Her dress was a dark blue, but layered from knee-level to hemline with white ruffles and lace. A high collar, also white, came right up under her chin. It was also trimmed with lace, as were the cuffs of her sleeves. She wore white kid gloves which accentuated the slimness of her hands. Her hat was a large bonnet affair, trimmed with some kind of ornamental feathers and ribbons which dropped down to her waist. The overall effect made it seem as though she floated lightly just above the ground. Without question she was the loveliest thing he had ever laid eyes on, and the sight of her was more intoxicating than the liquid he now drank.
Once full dark had come, the work on the barn had stopped and the town supper had begun. He looked around. A huge bonfire burned brightly, throwing light across the crowd which had gathered in the field east of the livery barn. It had quieted considerably now the supper was over. The children were playing games off in one of the pastures, and from their squeals of delight, Joshua suspected they might be playing skipping and running games like Wink ‘Em Slyly or Copenhagen. These involved a lot of catching and kissing the girls, the boys doing it strictly for the sake of the game, while the girls would shriek in horror and run just slow enough to get themselves caught. Joshua smiled ruefully. There were some advantages given to the young.
The adults had started to congregate in smaller groups—the women gathering around to compare notes on cooking or sewing while their fingers flew back and forth knitting this or that shawl or sweater. Melissa was with an older group of girls, too old for children’s games and too young to be included in Lydia’s circles. But Joshua noted there were sufficient young men standing around to keep them tittering and smiling demurely.
He saw his
He jumped down and waved as Joshua got the wagon moving again. Then, as Mary Ann sensed the excitement of her family—even Nathan, normally hard to ruffle, was looking about eagerly—she forgot about taverns and men’s ways. She felt her own heart quicken a little at the thought of being in town. She laughed softly and poked at Joshua’s back. “It’s all right to hurry a little if you want, Joshua,” she said.
Getting more and more frustrated with each passing hour, Joshua took another deep swallow from his mug of stout, a dark beer brought over to America from Ireland. For almost an hour now he had tried every device he could think of to maneuver Lydia McBride away from her family and the other young men who constantly hovered around her. Twice he had managed to speak a quick word or two, but then almost instantly someone else would break in before they could really begin to talk.
One of the things which dug at Joshua the most was the way the young men surrounding her were dressed. There was no question but what they represented Palmyra’s elite. The one who spoke with her now looked like some peacock strutting in front of a flock of hens. He certainly had not come to help with the barn raising. He wore a double-breasted, knee-length frocked coat with rolled collar. At his throat was a white scarf, every fold carefully crafted. Long, pin-striped trousers were strapped under brightly polished boots. The felt top hat was, Joshua supposed, the latest style—the brim turned up at just the right angle and the crown flared out slightly wider than the base.
Joshua had once seen in a book a picture of a French dandy holding a kerchief to his nose and sniffing daintily at it. At any moment he expected this one to do the same. He looked away, keenly aware of the plainness of his own heavy trousers made of homespun and the boots scuffed and worn and lacking any polish whatever.
But almost immediately his eyes came back to watch Lydia. She was no less fashionably dressed, but on her it was stunning. Her dress was a dark blue, but layered from knee-level to hemline with white ruffles and lace. A high collar, also white, came right up under her chin. It was also trimmed with lace, as were the cuffs of her sleeves. She wore white kid gloves which accentuated the slimness of her hands. Her hat was a large bonnet affair, trimmed with some kind of ornamental feathers and ribbons which dropped down to her waist. The overall effect made it seem as though she floated lightly just above the ground. Without question she was the loveliest thing he had ever laid eyes on, and the sight of her was more intoxicating than the liquid he now drank.
Once full dark had come, the work on the barn had stopped and the town supper had begun. He looked around. A huge bonfire burned brightly, throwing light across the crowd which had gathered in the field east of the livery barn. It had quieted considerably now the supper was over. The children were playing games off in one of the pastures, and from their squeals of delight, Joshua suspected they might be playing skipping and running games like Wink ‘Em Slyly or Copenhagen. These involved a lot of catching and kissing the girls, the boys doing it strictly for the sake of the game, while the girls would shriek in horror and run just slow enough to get themselves caught. Joshua smiled ruefully. There were some advantages given to the young.
The adults had started to congregate in smaller groups—the women gathering around to compare notes on cooking or sewing while their fingers flew back and forth knitting this or that shawl or sweater. Melissa was with an older group of girls, too old for children’s games and too young to be included in Lydia’s circles. But Joshua noted there were sufficient young men standing around to keep them tittering and smiling demurely.
He saw his
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