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remainder of the drive home.
    This is absurd , she thought as she waited for Tripp to help her out of the buggy after he’d tied up the horses. You don’t even know this man. She wondered why she felt anything for him at all as they walked into the house to the applause of her very small family.
    Sadie and Suzanne had set most things out before the wedding, knowing it was going to be brief and that they’d be right back. James’s mother, Ida, had placed the things that needed to stay cool on the table as they drove up.
    As they walked into the house, Sadie hoped her new husband would be happy with what she had made, and that he would enjoy it as much as she’d enjoyed his dinner when she arrived.
    Tripp stopped short as he entered the dining room after gesturing for Sadie to go in first. He stood for a moment, surveying the pink and white wedding cake that Sadie had made and the trays of baked goods, potato salad and roast chicken.
    “Sadie, you made all this?” he asked, his eyes wide.
    “I tend to bake when I get nervous,” she said quietly. “I hope you like it.”
    Tripp laughed and walked over to the cake. “It’s beautiful, Sadie. What kind is it?”
    Suzanne cut in. “Chocolate, of course. What other kind of wedding cake is there?” She smiled as she picked up two plates and handed them to the bride and groom. “Dig in, and let’s start the celebration.”
    They filled their plates and sat at the table, everyone chattering about the wedding and the good food. Tripp stopped when he bit into his meat pie, chewing slowly as he looked at it like it was something he’d never seen.
    “You made this, too?” he said, turning to Sadie.
    “Yes, I did. Do you like it?”
    “It’s delicious. Especially for something so simple.”
    She’d have done anything to stop the blush she could feel spreading over her cheeks. She couldn’t seem to find her voice, and her sister jumped in, saying, “It’s very good, isn’t it? It’s something Sadie created with your leftover roast.”
    “Oh, that explains it,” he said, seemingly oblivious to her discomfort.
    James cleared his throat. “How about some cake,” he said, as he moved toward the cake table.
    “Oh, yes. That’s a good idea,” Tripp said as he gestured for Sadie to join him.
    James lifted his punch glass for a toast and said, “Here’s to a long, happy partnership between two of my favorite people.”
    “Hear, hear,” Tripp said as he clinked glasses with James.
    He hadn’t even glanced at her during the toast, and Sadie sighed, settling into the understanding that this was a marriage in name only, and would never be anything but. Only a reason to have two names on the loan document.
    By the time Tripp turned to her and said, “The cake is delicious,” she’d decided that she would just be as helpful as she could and not allow herself to care what he thought.

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    I t was evening by the time they left the reception. The ride to Tripp’s house seemed longer than it was due to the silence that had fallen heavily between them. Sadie didn’t know what to say and wasn’t sure she even cared to think of anything, and Tripp seemed lost in his own thoughts.
    “I showed you the kitchen and downstairs the other day. How are you feeling? I can take you to your room and you can rest. It’s been a rather long day, and we have a lot to do tomorrow,” he said as he opened the door, stepping aside as he gestured for her to enter.
    She walked into the foyer and once again noticed that the house was very neat but with the few pieces of furniture and lack of decorating, it was clear he spent most of his time in the kitchen. He hung his hat on the rack by the door and set her suitcases at the bottom of the stairs.
    “Are you hungry?” he said, glancing toward the kitchen as he smoothed down his brown, wavy hair.
    With a laugh, she said, “How could I possibly be hungry after eating all of that food at the reception?”
    “Oh, yes, right,” he said,