She Asked the Gunsmith to Wed Her Before Her Uncle Sold Her Land — “I’ll Want to Court You After,” the Gunsmith Said
Chapter 14
When Samuel was sixty, he stopped making firearms himself.
His hands were not as steady.
Margaret found him sitting outside the shop.
“You are retired.”
“I am not.”
“You are.”
“I am supervising.”
“You have been supervising for three hours.”
“That is difficult work.”
She sat beside him.
The village had changed.
New houses stood along the road.
The old mill had been repaired.
The river crossing was busy.
But the Vale farm remained.
Margaret looked toward the fields.
“Do you ever wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t walked into your shop?”
Samuel smiled.
“Every day.”
“What do you think?”
“I think you would have found another way.”
She shook her head.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“You saved me.”
Samuel looked at her.
“No.”
“What?”
“You saved yourself.”
“I asked you to marry me.”
“And I said yes.”
She laughed.
“You make it sound easy.”
“It wasn’t.”
He reached for her hand.
“But I would do it again.”
Margaret rested her head against his shoulder.
“Even knowing how difficult I am?”
“Especially knowing.”
She smiled.
Then he kissed her forehead.
The sun began to set.
The old gunsmith’s shop filled with golden light.
Margaret looked at the man beside her.
The man she had married before courting.
The man who had promised to court her afterward.
And the promise had lasted longer than either of them expected.
