Until the Dawn

It seems like everything sleeps in winter, but it's really a time of renewal and reflection.

This has nothing to do with Marten. You and I would be unequally yoked.” He blinked, his confusion apparent. “My faith is what makes me who I am,” she said in a shaky voice. “Religion is important to me, and I couldn’t be married to a man who did not share that fundamental belief. You would grow to resent my devotion—” “I said you could teach Pieter the Bible,” he said tightly. “It’s not enough. You would eventually resent the way I lean on my faith. Even now, I can see you getting annoyed, as though if you glower enough it will shake me from this position. And I don’t want to be the only spiritual leader in a family. I would want my husband to help, to back me, and I will resent it if you can’t do that.

Sophie isn’t leaving,” Quentin asserted, his voice pure steel. “That woman sheds grace and light in every room she enters. Any man with a functional brain would try to catch a fragment of that grace and cherish it, rather than push her aside. I’m not sending her away. Were it in my power, I would cut the moon out of the sky and give it to her on a silver platter.” Her notebook dropped from her nerveless fingers, splatting open on the tile floor. Quentin whirled around to see her standing in the doorway. If he was embarrassed to have been overheard, he gave no sign of it. On the contrary, his eyes that had been sparking with anger gentled the instant he saw her. She glanced away, rocked by the protective expression on Quentin’s face. It shot straight to a vulnerable part deep inside and enveloped her with a sense of well-being. No man had ever spoken so passionately on her behalf, and a rush of wild, electrifying emotions stirred inside.

Sometimes unhappy people were like that. It was easier to remain locked in their fortress of discontent rather than risk the pain associated with emerging into the light of day.

Preparing and serving food had always been a joy, for it made her appreciate the abundance of the world.

She smiled softly. “What made you change your mind?” “You.

I found a Bible in his bedroom.” Her shoulders sagged. So . . . that was why he’d summoned her. He’d discovered she’d failed to slam the door on Pieter’s curiosity about faith and was going to interfere. “He asked if there was a Bible in the house, and I showed him where it was,” she admitted. Oddly, Quentin didn’t seem angry. He tugged on his collar and seemed merely a little embarrassed. “I’m willing to admit I’ve been wrong about that,” he said. “I studied Christianity at college and understand the basic doctrines. The principles aren’t bad, and if they bring Pieter comfort, I don’t mind him exploring until he is an adult and ready to make his own decisions.

Why did you jilt Sophie?” He fired the question with no warning, hoping to catch the younger man off guard, and he did. “Young men do stupid things. Letting go of Sophie has always been my biggest mistake.” “What a pity that some mistakes are fatal and can never be forgiven.” A confident gleam lit Marten’s eyes. “Have you talked to Sophie about that? Because Sophie is the most loving, forgiving woman I’ve ever met. She and I are friends again. She knows I regret what happened and forgave me long ago.

Isn’t doubt forbidden for a Christian?” he asked. She glanced over at him, an impish twinkle in her eye. “I don’t think God dwells on when we fall down. I’d like to think he is more interested in helping us get back up again.

And he’d laughed a lot as he’d helped improve her proposal. It felt good to work with someone who respected her opinion. She could see now that her earlier drafts were juvenile, full of wishful thinking, but Quentin forced her to dig deeper and work harder. Every paragraph of this document was dense with solid reasoning, including the numbers to back her assertions.

Well, yes,” she said, looking equal parts amused and bewildered. “But it’s the truth! I love my work, and that counts for something, doesn’t it?” Those government bureaucrats would trample Sophie to pieces if she couldn’t stand up for herself. He walked around the counter until he was standing directly opposite her. “Come on, Sophie! Stand up straight and look me in the eye. Tell me that you are the master and commander of that climate observatory. That there is no one in the state of New York who can operate that office with more efficiency than you. Make me believe it!” “Shhh . . . your grandfather is taking a nap,” she said, but she was giggling and at least seemed to be considering his point. It was going to be a challenge to prop her up enough so she could land a position at one of these newfangled observatories, but a fun one. “Let’s hear it. Dazzle me with your rhetorical brilliance.

I love you,” he said again. “I don’t expect you to profess any grand feelings for me yet. So long as you give me time, I know I can learn to be worthy of you.

A present,” he said, then winced. The presents he’d bought for Portia usually included ropes of pearls or gemstones the size of robin’s eggs. A man of his wealth ought to provide something much nicer than a sack of strange-looking pods. Sophie peeked inside the bag, her face screwing up in confusion. “What are they?” she asked, lifting the odd vegetable from the bag. It was a ruddy orange shade, larger than her hand, and looked like an oblong pumpkin. There were four of them in the bag. “You once said the cocoa powder in this village was bad, and you wanted to make your own. These are cocoa pods, shipped directly from Brazil. If you split it open, you will find fresh cocoa beans inside. Then you can begin your culinary adventure of making chocolate from scratch.” “You remembered!” she exclaimed. Her eyes widened in delight as she held the pod to her nose for a sniff and then ran her fingers along its waxy skin. “It’s fabulous. Thank you!

Sophie, you must be careful,” he said. “Quentin is in the rush of exhilaration that sometimes overtakes people new to God, and you mustn’t rush into a commitment until you know he is a man to whom you can be loyal in good times and bad, for better and for worse. You will be joining your life with his for all time. You will walk alongside him into whatever valleys or sorrows come his way, agreeing to help shoulder the burdens. His money and power cannot release you from these obligations. That is the nature of the marriage covenant.