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Closing her eyes, Emma rolled onto her other side so her back was facing Josiah. Perhaps if she could hurry and go to sleep, he might leave her alone tonight.
The robes moved as Josiah lay down and then covered himself. A few minutes later, Emma heard him loudly snoring.
Morning came, and light peeked through the cracks of the split log shutters covering the single window.
Emma stirred as she felt Josiah's breath hot on her neck.
"I was too tired last night," he breathed quietly. "I ain't had you in quite a spell, Emma." His lips brushed her unresponsive mouth. "Ain't you going to do anything?"
Emma turned her head away from him, trying to still her heart. "I can't," she whispered.
"Why not?" demanded Josiah. "I'm yer husband, ain't I?"
"It's not that," Emma tried to free his hand from her shoulder, and whimpered when his fingers only dug deeper.
"Then what?" he pressed.
"You aren't a Christian."
Emma's words grated on Josiah's ears. "What's that got to do with anything?" he reasoned, frustration resonating in his voice.
"I can't give my heart to you," Emma emphatically shook her head. "I won't. I refuse to."
"I ain't asking you to love me," Josiah argued, "just to tussle me."
"I can't," Emma was sounding frustrated, herself. "Not without feeling more for you than I want to. I was taught never to even look twice at a man like you, let alone to--"
"But I'm yer husband!" shouted Josiah.
"I never chose you," Emma tried to work through the inconsistencies of her rationale as honestly as she could with only the verses of Scripture she could remember. "I never chose you for my husband, and if I willingly give myself to you, then it's like I'm disobeying God by loving a nonbeliever. When you took me, I never had a choice! But I have a choice in what I do."
"You're taking this too seriously, Emma. I'm only asking fer a wife, not a lover."
Emma looked at him with startled brown eyes. "What's the difference?"
"You can't love a wife, cause yer stuck with her until she dies," Josiah answered simply.
"Then why did you take me?"
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One of my longtime readers, Myra Valcourt, has created a Facebook group just for you! "The Works of Judith Bronte" offers a forum to discuss the stories and characters, and a way to get to know other readers. I hope to see you there!
One of my longtime readers, Myra Valcourt, has created a Facebook group just for you! "The Works of Judith Bronte" offers a forum to discuss the stories and characters, and a way to get to know other readers. I hope to see you there!