How Far the World Will Bend

How Far The World Will Bend - Epilogue

Epilogue: A Crinkle in Time

"Christian, the children will be here any minute," Margaret Thornton called up the steps to her husband. "Are you ready?"

She heard footsteps from their bedroom above, punctuated by the slam of a door. Moments later, she watched her husband trod lightly down the stairs. She smiled up at him admiringly-despite his silver-streaked hair and the lines that creased the corners of his eyes, he was still lean and agile, well able to match his sons in tennis or any other sport-and devilishly handsome,

He wore his best worsted suit today, she noted, and a gold waistcoat and cravat. Styles may have changed, but John Christian Thornton remained loyal to the fashions of his youth.

Stopping at the foot of the steps, he smiled roguishly and struck an exaggerated pose. "Am I presentable? Is my cravat straight?"

She returned his smile. "Stop fishing for compliments-you are as handsome as the day I married you, although your cravat is a tad crooked." With a deft tweak, she straightened it. She stepped back from him, but he clasped her waist and pulled her into a close embrace.

"And you are as young and beautiful as the day we wed," he whispered softly as he nuzzled her ear. She laughed and he kissed her with relish before he continued, "Momma told me that you were the perfect woman for me-and she was right."

Margaret snorted. "It took you eight years to realize it. Grandfather told me to beware of Thornton men, and he was right."

"Nicholas thought the world of me," Christian protested hotly. "After all, he was my godfather. Don't forget, your mother loved my mother so much that she named her eldest daughter after her. With all of this history between us, it was fated that I would fall in love with and marry a Margaret, just as my father did."

Margaret smiled wryly. "Your mother saved my life and that of my mother. If she had not known how to turn a breech baby, I might not have survived."

She shivered, and he pulled her close to him, both caught up in their memories and gratitude that his mother's nursing skills had enabled her to save his wife in infancy.

Christian released Margaret, and they gazed at each other in deep affection, caught up in thoughts of their shared history. Both remembered the character that her grandfather, Nicholas Higgins, had been; and how Mary Higgins Armstrong, her mother, had remained a close and loving friend to his mother, Meg Thornton, for their entire lives. As a result, Margaret had always felt close to Christian's mother, who had become the young girl's godmother and sponsor.

It was no surprise to anyone when Margaret Armstrong went to London to study nursing. What was surprising was that she chose to return to Milton. She had had her choice of offers from hospitals in London and the surrounding environs, but her heart belonged to Milton, as she explained, and so she returned there to accept a position at the Donaldson Medical Clinic.

Christian was deeply grateful that she had done so. Although they had been acquaintances as children, meeting whenever the two families mingled at holiday dinners and parties, he had grown to admire Margaret Armstrong as a friend. When she had gone to London, he had missed her quick wit and intelligent conversation, and had felt oddly bereft.

When she returned several years later, it had been his lot to meet her at the train station, urged by his mother to do so. The moment she stepped out of the compartment, he was struck dumb at the sight of her. She was not a beautiful woman, but her face had so much character and her dark eyes were so large and brilliant that she gave the impression of beauty. He stood as dumb as a post while she stepped up to him and kissed him affectionately on the cheek. He vowed then that she would be his wife.