Roberta: Bride of Wisconsin (American Mail-Order Bride 30) by Kirsten Osbourne Page B
Book: Roberta: Bride of Wisconsin (American Mail-Order Bride 30) by Kirsten Osbourne
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Authors: Kirsten Osbourne
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical, Saga, Family Life, Western, Short-Story, Religious, Christian, Inspirational, Bachelor, matchmaker, Marriage of Convenience, Wisconsin, Faith, widower, victorian era, independence, Forever Love, Single Woman, Fifty-Books, Forty-Five Authors, Newspaper Ad, American Mail-Order Bride, Factory Burned, Pioneer, Single Father, Deceased Wife, Thirtieth In Series, Problems, Two Boys, Differences, Loveless Marriage
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tonight, instead of waiting."
"I am down to one pair of pants without a hole after ripping the ones I wore today. Would you mind fixing one enough so I can work in them?"
Bobbie sighed. "I can do that with no problem. I need to make you some new pants anyway. Why don't you leave the pair that's the most torn up, and I'll use it for a pattern and buy some fabric tomorrow. I can have it done in no time." She'd sewn many different garments while working in the factory, and she was very quick, especially with a sewing machine.
"I will do that. Thank you."
After the dishes were done, she walked into the parlor to find a small pile of mending. There were three pair of socks, two shirts, two pair of pants she could fix, and one pair of pants that was beyond repair. She picked up the pants first. "You need these the most, correct?"
He nodded. "That would be nice. I have no socks without holes, and I keep getting blisters on my feet, so if you could do some socks next, that would be nice."
"I will fix those," she said nodding at them, "but I will make more as well. I enjoy knitting and crocheting a great deal." Truly, since she'd never done it for a living, she liked it much better than sewing, but she would do whatever she needed to do for her new family. She knew the boys needed new clothes as well. Neither of them had pants that were long enough to fit their legs. "Why don't you read to me while I do the mending?"
He looked down at the book in his hands. "Do you know German?"
She shook her head. "No. Do you not have any books in English?"
He closed his eyes, not wanting to admit the truth to her. "I don't read English."
"But — you sent me letters. How do you not read English?"
"Konrad wrote the letters, and he read the one from you. He's a good reader and writer of English. I should have told you I can't read."
"But you can read! You just read a different language than I do. I can teach you to read English if you'd like. Or I'd love it if you taught me to speak German. I can speak a bit of French, but the only words I know in German are mutter , and usually frog- mutter , and vater ."
He smiled. "I know Lukas is silly to keep calling you frog- mutter , but I think it makes him feel better to not call you Mutter . His mutter died, and he still misses her a great deal. He doesn't want to replace her."
"I don't want to replace her, you know. But just how you can love Lukas, even though you loved Konrad first, I don't see why I can't be Bobbie, the one who came after Erna."
He stared at her as if she'd said something foreign to him. "You expect them to love you and still love Erna?"
"I really don't know why that's not possible."
But it would mean he could love her and still love his first wife, and he didn't see that as possible at all. He would feel as if he was betraying his first wife if he loved this one even a little bit. How could that be all right? With either of the women?
"I don't know. I will talk to them about it. It doesn't seem possible to me, though."
She bit her lip, trying to keep herself from tearing up. She so badly wanted to be part of their family, in a way she'd never imagined she would. She thought she'd be content to cook and clean for them, but instead, she wanted them to love her. It wasn't possible, though.
Roberta felt more defeated than ever before in her life when she went to bed that night. Even more so than she had the day the factory had burned to the ground. What was it about her that made her so unlovable? Her father hadn't loved her. Her mother had moved on with her life and married another man, effectively cutting her out.
She wanted to cry as she closed her eyes, but she refused. God loved her. Sarah loved her. She wasn't unlovable. She just needed to show her new family that. She could do it. She knew she could!
*****
Bobbie woke up earlier than usual for church on Sunday. Jakob had told her service was at nine and would last a full two hours, so she wanted to have
"I am down to one pair of pants without a hole after ripping the ones I wore today. Would you mind fixing one enough so I can work in them?"
Bobbie sighed. "I can do that with no problem. I need to make you some new pants anyway. Why don't you leave the pair that's the most torn up, and I'll use it for a pattern and buy some fabric tomorrow. I can have it done in no time." She'd sewn many different garments while working in the factory, and she was very quick, especially with a sewing machine.
"I will do that. Thank you."
After the dishes were done, she walked into the parlor to find a small pile of mending. There were three pair of socks, two shirts, two pair of pants she could fix, and one pair of pants that was beyond repair. She picked up the pants first. "You need these the most, correct?"
He nodded. "That would be nice. I have no socks without holes, and I keep getting blisters on my feet, so if you could do some socks next, that would be nice."
"I will fix those," she said nodding at them, "but I will make more as well. I enjoy knitting and crocheting a great deal." Truly, since she'd never done it for a living, she liked it much better than sewing, but she would do whatever she needed to do for her new family. She knew the boys needed new clothes as well. Neither of them had pants that were long enough to fit their legs. "Why don't you read to me while I do the mending?"
He looked down at the book in his hands. "Do you know German?"
She shook her head. "No. Do you not have any books in English?"
He closed his eyes, not wanting to admit the truth to her. "I don't read English."
"But — you sent me letters. How do you not read English?"
"Konrad wrote the letters, and he read the one from you. He's a good reader and writer of English. I should have told you I can't read."
"But you can read! You just read a different language than I do. I can teach you to read English if you'd like. Or I'd love it if you taught me to speak German. I can speak a bit of French, but the only words I know in German are mutter , and usually frog- mutter , and vater ."
He smiled. "I know Lukas is silly to keep calling you frog- mutter , but I think it makes him feel better to not call you Mutter . His mutter died, and he still misses her a great deal. He doesn't want to replace her."
"I don't want to replace her, you know. But just how you can love Lukas, even though you loved Konrad first, I don't see why I can't be Bobbie, the one who came after Erna."
He stared at her as if she'd said something foreign to him. "You expect them to love you and still love Erna?"
"I really don't know why that's not possible."
But it would mean he could love her and still love his first wife, and he didn't see that as possible at all. He would feel as if he was betraying his first wife if he loved this one even a little bit. How could that be all right? With either of the women?
"I don't know. I will talk to them about it. It doesn't seem possible to me, though."
She bit her lip, trying to keep herself from tearing up. She so badly wanted to be part of their family, in a way she'd never imagined she would. She thought she'd be content to cook and clean for them, but instead, she wanted them to love her. It wasn't possible, though.
Roberta felt more defeated than ever before in her life when she went to bed that night. Even more so than she had the day the factory had burned to the ground. What was it about her that made her so unlovable? Her father hadn't loved her. Her mother had moved on with her life and married another man, effectively cutting her out.
She wanted to cry as she closed her eyes, but she refused. God loved her. Sarah loved her. She wasn't unlovable. She just needed to show her new family that. She could do it. She knew she could!
*****
Bobbie woke up earlier than usual for church on Sunday. Jakob had told her service was at nine and would last a full two hours, so she wanted to have
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