Freedom in Marriage: A Southern Historical Romance ✅

Chapter Five

**This has not been edited or proofread.**

Catherine

Jack stood at my side as we watched four men slowly lower Easton's father into the ground. The casket was wooden and plain brown, and judging by the look on Easton's mother's face, there was no love lost between them, which meant that box was probably the cheapest one she could pick out for him.

I had no doubt their marriage had been orchestrated by their parents, but an arranged marriage did not have to be horrible. It could be beautiful. I firmly believed if two people really tried to make a marriage work, they could be truly happy.

But there were enough rumors of the way Mr. Abernathy had treated his wife, and it hadn't been kind. Unfortunately, that was the norm. And it terrified me to one day become married to a man who could be that cruel.

I squeezed my brother's arm. "I should pay my respects to Easton," I said softly.

Without a word, Jack led me over toward Easton, where he was standing a couple of feet back from the hole. Ethan, his younger brother, was standing with their little sisters, consoling them through their tears.

It seemed Ethan and Easton had done a good job protecting those girls from the cruelty of their father, and for that, I was thankful. Little girls didn't deserve having such horrible fathers.

"Easton," I quietly called as I neared him. My brother released my arm and stood a little ways back from us—enough to give us privacy but to also make sure I still had an escort. He was overprotective but in a very sweet way. He was the only man in my life who had never let me down nor trampled all over my dreams.

Easton turned to look at me. He looked tired. Bags resided under his eyes, discoloring his skin to a darker color. My heart wrenched in my chest. It was so clear he had the weight of his entire family and their business resting on his shoulders. And he had no one to truly share the weight of that burden with.

"I am sorry about your father," I gently told him, daring to take a single step closer. "I wish I'd known sooner. I would have come to check on you. See if you needed anything."

He smiled at me, and it brightened his eyes the tiniest bit, burning away some of the dimness that had been residing in them. "Seeing you here today is more than enough," he told me. "Did your father come?"

I shook my head, leaving it at that. Easton frowned but nodded in understanding. My father was still too drunk this morning to drag himself out of bed, so he mourned the loss of his dear friend by himself in his lonely bedroom.

"Are you okay?" I quietly asked him.

He made a low humming sound in his throat before holding his elbow out to me. I immediately placed my hand in the crook of his arm, allowing him to lead me away from the small crowd gathered by the deep hole in the ground. Jack fell into step a few paces behind us as Easton and I began to walk through the massive cemetery.

"My father gave me everything when I came home from college, but I haven't had time to prepare," he began. My soul hurt for him and what he was going through. What he was about to have to learn to navigate by himself with no guidance from his father. "I've now got my entire family to take care of. My mother may as well be a ghost with how much she does to help out. My brother needs to find his own way. My little sisters still need to be raised. And on top of all that, I still have a business to run." He blew out a soft breath. "I don't know how I'm going to do this."

He looked down at me. "And please never repeat this, but my father got another woman pregnant." I gasped in horror, my eyes widening. He swallowed thickly. "I still have to care for her and her child. She needs a place to live. Financial support." He shook his head. "It's so much."

"Oh, Easton," I said quietly, my voice filled with anguish for him. "I'm so sorry."

He shook his head. "Just your presence makes the burden a bit easier to manage," he told me quietly. "So, thank you for coming today. Because I was silently drowning over there."

I glanced at my brother. He was watching us, but I wasn't sure how much he could hear. I had an idea, but I wasn't sure what would happen if Jack decided to protest it. Not only would it be embarrassing, but then Easton may not take me up on my offer.

But this was something I wanted. Something I'd been hoping for since the very first moment Easton didn't go running from me when he found out how different I was from other women.

I looked back at the handsome man next to me. His dark, curly hair was gently blowing in the breeze, and his blue eyes were cloudy with indecisions and struggles.

If we married, I could take on the home, as a wife should. I could raise his little sisters, which would give him more time to focus on the family lumber business, and his brother could also find his own way. His own wife and family. He wouldn't have to try to rely on his unreliable mother to help him. I would be able to take care of all the family meals and provide the structure and support he and his family needed.

"What if we got married?" I tentatively asked.

Easton immediately drew to a stop and turned to face me. I turned as well, my skirts swishing around my legs. I tipped my head back to look up at him, thankful his taller body blocked the sun from beaming into my eyes.

"You mean that?" he asked incredulously. "You'd marry me, Catherine?"

"Catherine," my brother rumbled, coming over to us, no longer trying to preserve the distance. "Little sister, what are you doing?"

I tilted my chin up stubbornly at my brother, and I watched his lips twitch in amusement. He wasn't truly angry—just wanted to make sure I knew what I was agreeing to.

"I know what I'm doing, Jack. I promise," I softly assured him. I looked back at Easton after my brother nodded once and backed off a couple of steps. "Yes, Easton, I will marry you, if you'll have me as your wife."

He clasped my shoulders, his fingers trembling. "You do understand what you'd be taking on, correct?" he asked me.

I nodded. "I do. And I wouldn't have mentioned marriage if I didn't think I could handle it. Please let me help you, Easton."

He blew out a soft breath, his eyes softening, so much admiration and adoration shining in his blue eyes for me. "I will do my best to make you the happiest, most fulfilled wife on this earth," he swore.

I leaned up on my tiptoes and pressed a kiss to the corner of his lips. To anyone looking on at us, it would only seem as if I'd kissed his cheek, but he and I—and my dear older brother—would know differently. Once I was flat on my feet again, I smiled at him. "I believe I need a ring, Mr. Abernathy."

He chuckled and clasped my hand, pressing a kiss to my knuckles. "I will have one ready to put on your finger tonight after I speak to your father." He looked at Jack. "Do you think he will have any disagreements?"

Jack grunted. "I will make sure he won't," he assured Easton. Jack held his hand out to me. "Come, Catherine. Let's get you home so I can make sure nothing stands in the way of your happiness."

I beamed at my older brother as I placed my hand in his. Easton gently squeezed my other hand before releasing me. "Until later, Catherine."

"Until later," I whispered, smiling softly at him.