The next day the town was in a total rumor frenzy, everyone buzzing about Mary's assertion and Chris's denial. It was obvious, once a person looked, that she was pregnant, and many of the locals, seeing no reason for her to lie about who was responsible, deduced that she must be telling the truth.But there was at least one person in town who knew differently.
Mrs. Potter had nearly forgotten about the incident last spring when Andrew and Billy had told her about finding Buck in Mary's bed. And, looking at Mary she realized that the timing fit perfectly. The only question was what would she do with the knowledge.
It was obvious that Mary didn't want to marry Buck, but on the other hand, it was wrong for her to try to force Chris into a marriage that he didn't want, especially if she was carrying Buck's child.
She spent all morning fretting, and finally as she was about to burst, her answer walked in the door...or at least someone who could help her figure it out.
"Good morning, Nettie," Mrs. Potter called as the older woman entered.
"Morning, yourself..." Nettie replied, then she looked her friend in the eye. "What on earth is going on in this town?"
"You heard the talk?"
"How could I miss it?" Nettie mused, shaking her head. She was pretty sure that something wasn't right about the gossip. She knew Chris Larabee, moreover, she knew Vin Tanner, and, if her senses hadn't completely deserted her in her old age, she was pretty darn sure that those two were more than just good friends. So when the rumors said that Chris had assaulted Mary Travis and impregnated her, well, Nettie had her doubts.
"Nettie..." Mrs. Potter began, "I know something about what's going on...and I just don't know what to do about it."
"If it's that Chris Larabee isn't the father of that child...you need to speak up."
"How did you know?"
Nettie smiled and shook her head. "Don't have any proof, but I'm pretty darn sure that he isn't the father."
"Well...I have proof," Mrs Potter paused. "At least that she slept with someone else at about the time we're talking about."
"You know who the real father is?"
"Well, the night of the Founder's Day dance....."
+ + + + + + + Chris and Vin returned to town the next day. Despite the attention they knew Chris would draw, they needed to be in town in order to figure out who the father was. They ate a late breakfast and were drinking coffee out front when Buck and JD arrived.
JD was nearly jumping out of his boots he was so excited and curious about what was going on. "So, Chris...are you and Mary gonna get hitched?"
Buck realized too late what the kid was about to ask, and groaned as Larabee snapped at the young sheriff.
"No, JD...I ain't gonna get married...and I ain't the father so just shut up."
Buck groaned. He had almost completely forgotten about the morning that he'd woken up in Mary's bed, had, in fact, almost convinced himself that it had just been a drunken fantasy.
And then Mary had turned up pregnant.
And she was blaming Chris.
So, while a part of him felt bad that Chris was getting blamed for his deed, he definitely knew that he didn't want to marry the widow...and Chris and Mary seemed like such a good match, him a widower and all.
The only problem was that Chris wasn't co-operating.
"Well, Chris..." Buck began, drawing the attention away from JD and his ill thought outburst, "she is a good looking woman...and I'll bet she's something else in bed..."
Chris's teeth were clamped so tight that he could barely get a syllable out.
"B-u-c-k...."
"Well she is, Chris...all that silky hair and..."
"S-h-u-t..."
"And she has a nice figure..."
"U-p."
"Well, damn, Chris...you sure you aren't even the tiniest bit tempted...sure ya didn't spend an afternoon or two tucked up.."
"Buck!"
The next thing Buck knew, he was sitting on his ass in the middle of the street and his jaw felt like he'd been kicked by a mule. He lifted his hand to rub his face and was nearly run down by a wagon loaded down with bags of flour and sugar.
He jumped up and out of the way, ending up back on the boardwalk but decided to keep his distance from the others. Chris was still riled up and Vin looked like he was about to pull his mare's leg. Buck had just decided to cut his losses and head inside for a drink when he saw Nettie Wells approaching.
"Afternoon, boys," she greeted as she arrived, smiling at Chris and Vin and sending an odd look towards Buck. "Mind if I have a word with you, Chris...and Vin?"
Vin smiled and tipped his hat. "Anytime, Nettie." He turned to Chris. "Coming?"
Chris nodded, and the three headed across the street.
Buck turned to JD. "Boy I wouldn't want to be Chris about now...she looks like she's on the warpath...musta heard about Mary."
"Yeah..." JD agreed. "Suppose she'll be holding that Spencer of hers at the wedding?"
They both laughed and headed inside for a drink.
After an enlightening discussion with Nettie, Vin and Chris headed over to talk to Mary.
Buck was watching from the saloon as Nettie headed back into Mrs. Potter's store and his two friends headed up the street. He had seen some odd looks cross both men's faces during the conversation and now, as they approached the newspsper office, he decided that Nettie must have insisted that Chris do his duty. The only thing that didn't quite figure in was the fact that Vin was accompanying Chris for what was most likely going to be a very personal conversation. Finally Buck decided that Chris must just need some moral support while he spoke to his soon to be bride. Buck smiled, he truly believed that remarrying and raising a family was just what Chris needed.
As they approached the Clarion office, Vin slowed his pace and turned to Chris. "You sure you want to talk to her right now?"
He almost wished he hadn't asked the question when Chris's reply sounded more like a snarl from a pissed off cougar than human speech.
Vin sighed and resigned himself to witnessing the upcoming confrontation.
It wasn't gonna be pretty.
They entered and found Mary working on the latest issue of the newspaper, surprise evident on her face as she looked up and realized who had just walked in.
"Chris, Vin." She rose and started to walk around the desk.
"Just stay put, Mary," Chris began, "this ain't gonna take long."
She met his eyes and cringed at the rage she saw there. "W..what do you want?"
"I want you to quit lying, Mary. I want you to leave me the hell alone and I want you to marry the man who you slept with...the one who is the father of your child...Buck Wilmington."
"What do you mean, why do you think Buck is the father..."
She was cut off as Chris moved around the desk with lightening speed and took her by the arm..."I know you slept with him last Spring, there are witnesses....and you know as well as I do that you and I have never lain together."
Her face flushed with embarrassment, eyes filling with tears as she realized that her ruse had failed. "How...how could anyone know?"
Chris turned away disgusted, but Vin answered softly, knowing that the answer would further embarrass the widow. "Billy and Andrew saw you the morning after the dance...when they told Mrs. Potter, she told them not to tell anyone. But when you lied about Chris, she told Nettie."
Before Vin could say more, Chris turned back around, his voice hard and sarcastic. "I think that you and Buck will make wonderful parents, and if you keep him on a short leash...he'll be a good husband."
"But I don't love Buck," Mary began, tears now falling down her cheeks.
"Should have thought about that before you climbed into bed with him," Chris stated flatly as he turned and reached for the door, turning back at the last moment. "When do you want the ceremony...soon I should think," he noted, looking pointedly at her widening waistline.
Mary nodded, knowing that her father-in-law would never allow her to remain single while expecting a child. In fact, the always proper gentleman would be extremely disappointed in his son's widow...maybe even to the point of taking his grandson from her if she didn't make an attempt at respectibility. For Billy's sake she would marry Buck Wilmington.
After thinking it through she looked up, realizing that Chris and Vin were leaving. "Will Buck even want to get married?"
Chris smiled a shark's smile..."No more than I did...but he won't really have a choice, will he?"
Then the two men left.
There were arrangements to be made.
Later that afternoon, Chris and Vin met with Josiah, Nathan and Ezra. And, after explaining the situation to them, the three peacekeepers agreed to help with the plan.
It had been all Chris could do not to walk back across the street and beat the hell out of Buck after Nettie had told them the whole sordid story, but the wily old homesteader had caught his attention with an idea that appealed to his devious side.
Buck needed to be taught a lesson about accepting responsibility for his actions. While there were, no doubt, several little "Bucklins" scattered across the west, most of the women he laid with were either married woman who weren't completely faithful, or "fallen" women. When he laid with Mary, he had crossed a line.
What bothered Chris more than anything else was that Buck would have let him be railroaded into a loveless marriage when he knew that it was his own child that Mary was carrying.
The upcoming wedding was going to be quite a surprise affair...especially for the groom.
By the next afternoon, everyone in town knew that there was going to be a wedding on Sunday, right after Josiah's weekly service. It would, no doubt, cause his usual small congregation to swell to a recordbreaking size - especially since most of the town would mistakenly believe that the groom would be the reknowned gunfighter, Chris Larabee. In fact, even the actual groom would think so...at least until shortly before the ceremony.
The judge had been wired, and he and his wife would arrive on Friday to prepare for the event.
Chris and Vin had walked back to the saloon after the conversation with Mary and approached Buck as he sat at his usual table finishing his lunch.
"So, Buck..." Chris began, "Would you do me the favor of joining the wedding party on Sunday?" Letting the big man jump to his own conclusions.
"Well, congratulations, Chris...it's about time...you want me to be your best man again?"
"Actually, Buck, that job is already taken." Chris continued, "But I want you to have an honored place...will you promise to be there for me?"
Buck assumed that the job of best man had been assigned to Vin, but he really didn't mind...he was just relieved that he was off the hook, and that his oldest friend was finally going to remarry.
"You know I will...and I'll try not to look TOO good...wouldn't want to disappoint the bride and all."
Chris nodded, still wanting to punch the smiling man in the face again, his knuckles still ached from their acquaintance with the solid jaw an hour or so ago, but he restrained himself...Buck's time would come...
"Well, I'd better be going," Chris finished, "got a lot to do before Sunday."
Vin stood quietly at Chris's side while he spoke with Buck, and had to bite his cheek several times during the conversation. He shook his head as they left the saloon, wondering how Chris had kept a straight face. Then realized, that despite his relief at proving his innocence, Chris was still angry with Buck. Vin whistled tunelessly as they headed up the street to make arrangements for the upcoming event.
+ + + + + + +
Saturday afternoon Judge Travis and his wife, Evie arrived on the stage. After a brief stop at their hotel room to get Evie settled in, the Judge came downstairs to have a conference with Chris, Mary, Vin and Josiah. They met in the small dining room that the hotel used for private parties.
Chris was still too angry to speak civilly to Mary and the Judge, so Josiah was elected to explain the situation.
The Judge had received several wires over the past week, the first from Mary that stated that she and Chris were to be wed and, by the way, she was expecting his child.
The second one arrived later the same day and simply stated that the ceremony might be delayed and for the Judge to wait before coming to Four Corners.
The third arrived just as he and Evie were to board the stagecoach on their way to Four Corners to find out just what on earth was going on - this was the one that really set the the Judge's nerves on edge. This one was from Chris Larabee and it explained that the child that Mary was carrying was not his, that he would not be marrying his daughter-in-law, but there would, in fact, be a wedding...between Mary and the father of her unborn child.
What it didn't say was who that man was.
So now, Judge Travis was more than just angry, he was seething. After spending a long, uncomfortable coach ride on his way to witness the marriage of his son's widow to the unknown man who had impregnated her outside of the bonds of Holy Matrimony...someone was going to answer to him, and they were going to do so...now.
Before Josiah or anyone could open their mouths to speak, the Judge stood and addressed the group. "I want someone here to tell me exactly what is going on." He paused to glare at the men and, in passing, at Mary too. He was deeply disappointed in her...barring her being raped, he could not easily accept any excuse for her actions.
"It's a bit of a long story, Judge Travis," Josiah began, "but if you will let me attempt to explain..."
An hour later, after learning all the sordid details, Orrin Travis nodded his head - as much as he disliked the situation that Mary had managed to get herself into, he agreed that the plan was most likely the best outcome that could be hoped for under the circumstances. The only thing that still bothered him was the fact that Buck had not been informed of his upcoming wedding.
"Are you sure that he will agree to marry her?" Travis asked.
Chris spoke up then. "It's not like he'll have a choice in the matter...he is responsible for Mary's condition."
"So why don't we tell him now?" The Judge looked confused, and still angry at the thought of the ladie's man taking advantage of Mary.
This time it was Vin's soft voice that answered. "We ain't telling him 'til tomorrow morning...just in case he decides to run fer it...none of us really want to be watching his room all night."
Travis nodded, his frown deepening. The thought of someone running out on a woman didn't sit well with him.
"Well, I guess you men know him better than I do, but if he might run now, what makes you so sure that he won't leave after the ceremony?"
Chris's smile didn't reach his eyes as he answered the question. "That is something we can be pretty sure won't happen...his mother was a working woman, and ended up that way after her husband deserted her while she was carrying Buck. Despite what happened between he and Mary...he is an honorable man." The look on his face, caused some doubt as to whether he actually believed those last words.
"All right, but he had better show up, I won't have any more dishonor on our family name than there is already. He looked pointedly at Mary.
They finished the meeting and left to finish up with the last minute details for the ceremony the next day.
That evening the saloon was full as Buck threw a "bachelor party" for Chris.
Given the circumstances, it wasn't one of his brightest ideas.
Buck never had a clue just how close he came, that night, to being the recipient of a special 45 caliber present from the "groom-to-be'. In fact, if Vin hadn't been there at Chris's side to remind him that the ladies' man would be spending many years paying penance for his deeds, it was unlikely that Buck would have survived the night - especially as the evening progressed and, after imbibing a fair amount of spirits, the big man began to boisterously toast his friend - congratulating him on finally taking the beautiful widow...first to his bed and now to the altar.
Once the men in the saloon were suitably inebriated, Chris and Vin slipped out and away. Vin had plans for he and Chris to have a private party of their own.
As they headed down the street, Chris was still angry, but Vin was quick to remind him that the following day's events would more than make up for his current frustration, and gradually he began to relax.
Once they were in the privacy of Chris's room, Vin's other "reminders" managed to distract him from anything else.
Sunday morning dawned clear and bright, the beginnings of a perfect October day.
The beginning of a day that would long be remembered in the town of Four Corners.
While many of the town's residents were attending Josiah's weekly service, the seven were busily preparing for the second service that Josiah would be performing, although for that one he would have the assistance of the Judge.
Orrin Travis was determined that this ceremony would be absolutely legal. He had no intention of letting the culprit off the hook.
Many of the local men had been reluctant to rise and attend the morning service after partying late into the night, but the towns' women made sure that most of them were in attendance - after all, the ones who staked claim to the good seats early would have the best view for days big event.
Vin had actually stayed in Chris's room overnight, knowing that most of the locals would be at the church and even if someone saw him there they would assume that he was there to help Chris prepare for the wedding.
Now, dressed in their best clothes, they headed downstairs to find some coffee to fortify themselves.
Judge Travis met them in the dining room, forgoing the church service in order to be there when the men confronted Wilmington.
They had just poured their second cups when Buck arrived.
"Morning everyone," the tall man greeted as he entered the dining room and helped himself to a cup of coffee from the sideboard.
"Good morning, Mister Wilmington," the Judge intoned, "please join us - we need to discuss today's ceremony..."
As he sat, Buck noticed that all eyes were on him. He looked at the Judge and suddenly noticed the fire in the older man's eyes.
"So...if Vin's the best man...what am I?" Buck asked, taking a large gulp of coffee.
Travis looked him in the eye and answered. "The groom."
It took a few seconds for the answer to sink in, then the mouthful of coffee reappeared in a spray across the table.
"Wwwhat?" the still sputtering man finally got out.
"You heard the man," Chris answered, glaring at Buck's look of shock. "You are the father of the child she's carrying...so you are the one who will be wedding the widow today."
"I...we...it was an accident..." Buck finally managed to respond.
"Are you saying that you don't think you should be responsibe for your actions?" The Judge asked in an ominous tone.
Buck looked up and realized that what he wanted...or didn't want, had no bearing on today's events. He swallowed, and looked into the Judge's eyes. "No, of course I'll do the right thing."
"Then I suggest you go up and make yourself presentable. The wedding ceremony will begin in just over one hour."
Buck nodded and looked around the table. The Judge looked stern, Vin had a completely neutral look on his face, but Buck could almost swear that he was biting his cheek to keep from laughing, and when he looked at Chris he realized that he'd been completely outmaneuvered - t
e blond had a smug, "cat that ate the canary" look plastered on his handsome face.
"You sure you don't want to..." Buck began, then stopped as Chris narrowed his eyes. He suddenly recognized the look as one he'd seen on the blond's face before...just before he drew his weapon in a gunfight. "No...I guess not," he finished weakly and rose. "I'll go change."
They watched him leave, then watched as Ezra followed him, his assigned duty was to stand guard outside the door, making sure that Buck arrived at the church at the proper time.
"I think he took that pretty well," the Judge mused as they watched him leave.
"Yeah...especially when he spewed that coffee," Vin added with a smirk.
"Think I'll have some breakfast," Chris added smiling, realizing that his appetite had been missing for the past few, stressful days.
"Think I'll join ya," Vin added as the Judge stood and left with a nod to the two men. "Worked up a bit of an appetite myself." Ducking his head to hide the shy grin in his face.
Meanwhile Mary was having a small problem of her own, and it was a "small" problem...her dress was too small. She wanted to wear her light blue satin gown, and in fact, wasn't sure if anything else would fit. Finally she gave up and had Billy summon help.
Soon, with the help of Evie Travis and Mrs. Potter pulling on the laces of her corset as she clung to the bedpost, they were able to squeeze her into the dress.
Buck sat on his bed in a daze.
How had this happened?
One little voice in his head nagged at him to get ready for his impending vows...another, however was screaming...RUN
He knew that someone was outside his door, he could hear them pacing. He wasn't sure who it was, but he was pretty sure that whoever it was would stop him if he went anywhere except the church. Then he looked up and saw the window. He had made his escape via windows on numerous occasions...why not today?
It wasn't that he wanted to leave Four Corners...but marriage, and a family - with Mary-the-ice-queen-Travis had little appeal to Buck.
He stood, quickly packed the few things he couldn't leave without, and walked over to the window.
He slid it open and had barely lifted his leg to climb out when he heard it...the sound of a rifle being cocked.
Damn!
He looked down and into the stone hard gaze if Nettie Wells...over the sites of her Spencer carbine.
"Going somewhere, Mr. Wilmington?" she asked as he set his foot back down inside the room.
"Um...no, Miss Nettie...just needed some air," he managed to get out between clenched teeth.
"Well you better get a move on...they are almost ready for you at the church."
Buck backed away from the window.
He was caught...well and truly caught.
He sighed, finished dressing, and headed down to meet his fate. He might have looked happier if he was heading to the gallows.
The church was packed. The rumors had been flying all day, growing more wild with each retelling, the church abuzz with speculation as to just who was actually about to take the vows...if the latest one was to believed, a pack of wild men had carried the newspaperwoman off and ravaged her and now, the seven were fighting over who would be the one to step up and save the innocent woman's virtue.
The chatter stopped abruptly when Josiah entered and walked to the front of the building, accompanied by Judge Travis. His wife, Evie, was sitting on the front row with Billy Travis and the Potters. They reached the front and turned to face the assemblage.
The Judge stepped forward and addressed them. "We are well aware that there are many rumors spreading today, so before we start I would like to set the record straight."
A plausible, but not quite true story had been decided upon, since the truth was just not something Mary, or the Judge, wanted known.
"Last spring, during the Founder's Day celebration, my daughter-in-law was the victim in an assault, ...she was too ashamed to report the attack and never spoke up, but as you are well aware by now, there was an unforseen consequence of that assault, which was not, as rumored, Mr. Larabee." He paused and looked around the room before continuing. "Buck Wilmington has asked for her hand, and Mary has accepted his offer, so today we are here to witness their wedding vows."
A spate of whispers broke out in the pews, everyone had thought that Chris Larabee was the father and would be the one to wed the widow. Now, Buck Wilmington, the town's biggest womanizer was about to marry her.
The Judge called for silence, and moments later Buck appeared, the town healer, Nathan Jackson and the sheriff, JD Dunne, at his side. As people turned to watch them enter, they could also see Chris Larabee, Vin Tanner and Ezra Standish standing in the back of the church.
Once they had made their way to the altar where Josiah waited, the Judge walked to the back and took Mary's hand to lead her down the aisle.
The ceremony was short, the bride subdued, and the groom pale and sweaty. But the vows were pledged and the new couple was introduced to the town.
Then it was over and the whole town headed outside to celerate at a picnic set up in the churchyard. Nettie had managed to recruit most of the towns' women and they had prepared a suitable feast to mark the occasion.
Chris and Vin watched as Buck and Mary repeated the words that Josiah and the Judge read to them and, watched as, at the appropriate moment, the new couple shared a chaste kiss, sealing the union.
Not really caring to attend the upcoming celebration, they slipped out of the church and headed out of town. They were more than ready to get away for a day or two.
The newlyweds would be leaving on Monday, taking a stage to Red Rock City where they would catch a train to St. Louis for a week long "honeymoon" courtesy of the Judge.
The ride to the cabin was a well earned break from the chaos of the past few days, only the gentle sound of Pony and Peso's hooves and the wind in the trees to break the silence the two men craved. Shy smiles passed between them whenever either man looked and caught the other doing the same.
It was going to be a special night.
Chris had, as they watched the ceremony, whispered his desire to submit himself to Vin this night. He was still nervous, as Vin had been so recently, but he was also curious after witnessing the absolute pleasure on his lover's face when he had given himself to Chris.
It would be a night of new explorations for both couples, but Chris was absolutely sure that his night would far surpass the one his oldest friend would have in his marraige bed.
His grin grew at the thought and before long a soft chuckle escaped his lips.
"What ya laughing at, Larabee?" Vin asked, suspicious. The blond rarely laughed out loud.
Chris turned and smiled at his friend and lover. "Just thinking about partners and how glad I am that I've got the one I do...think we should have a honeymoon ourselves."
"That mean we gotta go to St. Louis?"
Chris's smile grew. "No, I think a private cabin in the woods will do just fine..."
Vin smiled back, then kicked Peso into a canter, calling back as he surged ahead of Chris and his black. "Let's go then...times a wastin'!" FIVE
The next months brought about a few changes in the town.
As Mary's pregnancy progressed, her disposition regressed. Where she was normally straight-laced and proper, she was now a hormone driven harpy of the first order.
Now, Buck was tied to a very, very short apron string. His schedule adjusted to suit her needs.
And her needs included, among other things, his presence at their home by 5:30 pm for dinner, his presence at Sunday church service, a change in his appearance that included starched white shirts, a neat, tight vest and suit coat, string tie, hair oil and mustache wax (only after he put his foot down and refused to shave his lip). And, most recently, she had arranged with the president of the bank to hire Buck as a teller.
The job lasted about a week and a half, and only that long because Mary promised the banker a very special advertising rate if he would give Buck another chance.
Since she had yet to find another "suitable" job for her husband, he had a small amount of free time during the past week.
Unfortunately for Buck, his idea of freedom and Mary's idea of freedom didn't quite coincide.
Recently, as the other six sat in the saloon eating lunch, Buck had slipped in the doors, crouching low as he entered. He hurried to the bar looking for Inez who was, at the moment in the kitchen. While he waited impatiently for her return, his eyes darted to the doors and back several times, he was obviously worried that someone might soon show up. When Inez finally appeared from the back, she was carrying a tray full of food.
"Inez..." Buck pleaded, as she brushed past him, "I need a beer."
"In a moment, Senor Buck," she responded as she delivered the food, taking her time to make sure the plates were situated just right.
She finished and returned to the bar. "Now, what did you want, Buck?"
"Beer...a beer, please hurry..." his eyes darted back to the doors once again.
She turned and poured the drink and placed it in front of the desperate man, just as the tap tap tap of quick footsteps sounded from outside.
Buck picked up the glass and raised it to his lips just as the doors swung open.
"Buck Wilmington..." Mary's exasperated voice rose as she saw him starting to take a sip of beer. "I've been looking all over for you...put that down and come help me carry the supplies home from Mrs. Potter's store."
The tiny amount of fluid that had entered Buck's lips was just enough to whet his appetite, he looked at the still full glass then back to his very pregnant wife and after long a moment's hesitation, rose and followed her out the door to the surpressed chuckles of the six witnesses.
"Shame on you," Inez scolded, as they laughed.
"Sorry, Inez," Josiah soothed, "but did you ever see a better illustration of the term 'hangdog' in your life?"
The perky woman smiled then. "No, I never did, and I guess he deserves what he has got...but I still feel a bit sorry for him."
"Yeah, sometimes I do too," Chris agreed, "then I remember how he would have let me take the blame and I figure he got off easy..."
"And it is funny," JD added, "watching her try to keep him in line, and away from other women...while his animal maggotism keeps attracting them, well, ya gotta wonder how long it's gonna take?"
"You are welcome to place your wager, JD..." Ezra countered. "You can bet on how long it takes him to stray...or how long it takes him to bolt."
"You're taking bets on Buck's fidelity?" Nathan asked, in awe. "Have you no shame?" He paused a moment before continuing..."I'll put $5 down that he doesn't make it past New Year's."
The sound of more laughter drifted out the batwing doors.
On January 12th, Mary gave birth to a healthy girl, and a robust boy.
+ + + + + + +
It was finally spring, and just a week before the annual Founder's Day celebration and, life in Four Corners had once again settled back into a familiar routine...of a sort.
Once Mary had delivered the twins, Orrin Bucklin, Jr and Evangeline Agatha, her disposition returned to normal. At least normal for Mary Travis.
Unfortunately for Buck, she was still feeling quite unable to consider having congical relations yet...perhaps in another month.
Buck was beginning to think that he might have a better chance at satisfaction if he were to join a monestary. And, on top of being completely frustrated sexually, he was now busily engaged in a full time job...that being caring for the two children while Mary ran the newspaper.
That came about after Buck had failed to keep the third job she arranged for him. So, when she went back to work at the Clarion, he had gone to work...at home. The paper had been in a hiatus during the final days of her pregnancy and for the first few weeks after delivery. Now, she was glad to get back to the job she loved.
It had taken most of the winter for Chris to let go of his anger at Buck for not speaking up when Mary had claimed that Chris was the father of her unborn child...but after time had passed, their long-time friendship overrode the resentment. His anger at Mary persisted. She knew for a fact, when she claimed that he was responsible, that it was a lie. Buck at least, had the excuse that he didn't know that she hadn't slept with anyone else.
It was on that Monday, as Founder's Day drew near, that Chris and Vin were heading out to the cabin. They had to detour behind the town because the street was blocked in preparation for the upcoming party.
They came around the corner and found themselves witnessing something neither had ever expected to see.
In the small yard behind the Travis house was Buck. He had one very soggy, loudly crying child balanced on his hip as he ducked in and out among the diapers hanging on the clothes line looking for a dry one. He had just located one when a shrill cry echoed from the bassinet on the other side of the yard. He yanked the dry diaper from the line, and headed towards the second screaming child. He picked up the second, child, dropping the diaper in the process and, now holding two soggy, smelly babies was desperately trying to figure out what to do next.
Chris turned to Vin, a look of amusement...and relief that it was Buck standing there instead of himself, on his face.
Vin just nodded, words unnecessary as they quickly turned their horses and headed out of town.
the end
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