Still House Pond by Jan Watson Read Free Book Online

broke the suction from the baby’s mouth and repositioned her. “Does that feel better?”
    â€œMuch.” Mary settled back against the pillows Copper had stacked there.
    â€œMerry’s sure a pretty name. You could switch your mom’s name around. Merry Prudence has a good ring to it. Don’t you think?”
    Mary fondled her infant’s head. “She is pretty, ain’t she? Look at her ears—so perfect. Let’s see what she wants to be called. Prude?”
    The baby nursed in bursts of sucks but never lost hold.
    â€œShe’s good at this,” Copper said, smiling at the ease with which the feeding was going. That was not always the case. It took some infants hours to catch on, but then Mary was a natural. Copper had oft noticed that the calmer the mother, the quicker the baby latched. She herself had loved nursing, though the twins had presented a bit of a challenge. She’d learned to hold them backward, tucked around her waist like sacks of potatoes. It seemed like all she did the first year of their life was feed them. Watching Mary made her yearn to have another baby. She’d have to talk to John. The girls were three, after all. But he seemed set against it, and she would never go against his wishes.
    The baby mewed like a kitten. Her head lolled away from the breast.
    â€œMerry?” her mother said.
    As if in response, the baby’s eyes popped open. She stared at her mother’s face.
    Mary stroked the baby’s palm and smiled as the small hand curled around her finger. “Looks like she’s picked what she likes best.”
    Copper retrieved a certificate, a pen, and a capped pot of ink from her delivery kit. “It’s Merry Prudence Randall then, is it?” When Mary nodded, Copper began to fill out the form, noting place, date, hour, day of the week, and the weight and length. She always took her time with this part of the delivery process for this was an important document and would most likely be cherished in the family Bible along with, hopefully, a record of baptism and someday a certificate of marriage.
    Dipping the nib of the pen in the pot, she said, “I need your maiden name and your husband’s given name.”
    â€œI was an Allen,” Mary said, shifting the baby to her other side, “and believe it or not, my husband’s given name is Big Boy.”
    â€œReally? I figured that to be a nickname,” Copper replied.
    â€œEveryone does, but Big Boy is the name his father gave him. Too bad you weren’t at that delivery. He might have had a proper first name.”
    â€œYou’ve got me there,” Copper said, scribing a cursive B . “It’s just that names are so important. I once delivered a baby whose father insisted on naming him Nimrod Axel. That bothers me to this day.”
    After pressing a piece of blotting paper over the document, Copper set it aside to dry before she put her seal on it. “Speaking of Big Boy, I’d best go fetch him so he can meet his daughter. Last time I checked, he was walking a circle in the barn. He said he was too nervous to wait in the kitchen.”
    Mary clasped Copper’s hand. “Thank you ever so much. I would never have made it without you.”
    Big Boy was indeed right where she had left him, but now he was polishing tack. “You’re going to wear that leather out,” she said.
    Big Boy dropped the harness. “Is Mary all right?”
    â€œMary is fine, and your daughter is beautiful.”
    Big Boy caught her in a bear hug and whirled her around the barn. “A girl. Are you sure?”
    Copper laughed. He was the nicest man. He reminded her of her father. “I’m sure. Go see for yourself.”
    Big Boy dashed a tear from his eye. “I never thought to see this day. I feel like the luckiest man alive.”
    Copper followed him across the yard, tarrying outside to give the parents some privacy with their