Doc stood up and declared, “Then put on your coat, Syl.” He walked over to where she sat at one of the tables, took her hand, and got down on one knee. The gathering grew so quiet you could hear the soft breeze. “Sylvia Stewart. I have loved you for over twenty years. We don’t have a lot of life left but I’d like to spend it with you. I know what stands between us is painful, and if I could go back in time and fix that I would, but since I can’t, we need to go forward. Marry me, Syl. Let’s not waste another ten years.”
Everyone waited.
A tear coursed down Sylvie’s cheek and she looked at the man Eddy knew she loved and reached out and cupped his cheek. She nodded, and whispered, “Okay Oliver. Yes.”
Cheers filled the yard and an ecstatic Vera yelled out, “Two wedding dresses!”
Later, as Rhine and Eddy sat on the porch in the dark and watched the city’s fireworks light up the sky, Eddy asked Rhine, “Did you think she’d say yes?”
“No. Did you?”
“No. She surprised me as much as she did everyone else. But Doc’s right. No sense in them wasting any more time.”
Rhine pulled her closer. “That’s why we’re not delaying our wedding day. I’m ready to start my life with you.”
“I’m ready for the wedding night.”
Rhine laughed. “Always plainspoken, Eddy.”
“Yes, sir. You wouldn’t have me any other way.”
He kissed her. “Not at all.”
Eddy and Rhine spent the next couple of days looking through catalogs for furnishings for their new home—they planned to move in after their wedding day. They had a slight argument over his free-spending ways. Eddy thought the bed he wanted was way too expensive.
“I’m not making love to you in a cheap bed, Your Majesty.”
That shot down her protests and she laughed, “When you put it that way.”
He kissed her. “Good.”
Rhine promised her a trip to San Francisco to pick out what the catalogs didn’t offer in the days ahead. Having never been to the city before, she looked forward to it and to meeting his brother Andrew and his wife. She also didn’t fuss when he promised her a new wardrobe worthy of a queen because she was learning that he’d simply spend the money over her protests anyway.
Eddy kept her word to Vera and resumed her role of scarecrow pincushion so her dress could be made. She had to admit it was beautiful. She’d never owned a gown with a full sweeping skirt and a heart-shaped bodice. The silk fabric was as close a match to Rhine’s blue armchair as Vera could find on such short notice and it, too, was beautiful, but Eddy had little patience for all the fussing that accompanied the process. She did have patience for the new diner though, and at least once a day Eddy walked down to check on the progress. Although Zeke remained distant and terse even in the face of knowing the truth about Rhine, watching the building slowly take shape filled her heart.
Aweek after the Fourth of July festivities, Eddy was at Mr.Rossetti’s market and was greeted with a smile. “I hear you and Mr.Fontaine are getting married. Congratulations.”
“Thank you. We’d love for you and your wife to come.”
“We’d be honored. I have a surprise for you.”
“What is it?”
“A large shipment of oranges have arrived.”
An excited Eddy followed him to the crates where they sat like globes of orange sunshine. “Thank you, Mr.Rossetti.”
“You’re welcome.”
She picked out enough to make marmalade for Sylvia and Vera and Jim and Rhine. She was reminded of Rhine’s heated words about what he wanted to do with it, so she threw a few extra into her sack.
When she got back to the boardinghouse, she began grating them right away while Sylvie let her in on her and Doc’s plan to be married in San Francisco next month. There was a knock on the back door and Sylvia walked over to see who it might be. When she got there, Eddy saw her freeze and then begin to take small steps backwards. Natalie Greer holding a Colt followed her in. Fear gripped Eddy, and her words to Rhine about the young woman being unhinged came back to haunt her.
Sylvie said quietly, “Natalie. What is this about?”
But Natalie ignored her and turned to Eddy. “You come with me or I’ll shoot you right here.”
Eddy and Sylvie shared a silent look. “Sure,” Eddy said.