He lowered his hand with a soft smile, a grin that was less lear and more calculating. She thought he was after her body alone! Oh, how Ebenezer wanted to correct her, to let her know that to have such a woman for a wife was only a secondary benefit, that she was providing him with far more than a mere excuse for acceptable conjugation! Far more, in fact, than he might ever reveal to her. And after all, as good Christians they should not let vanity hold such sway, not his taking pride in having one such as she for a lawful mate. 

Mirabelle's next question was a good one, the answer to which came to him as readily as the question itself. "Tomorrow morning just after you have broken your fast, come to my father's house. You say you have no other goods of worth, so leave all else behind save that which you wear; my father, in his ailment, still has kept many of my mother's clothing and that which we can not have tailored to you we shall buy later. Should any press you as to the reason for the visit, merely say that you go in seek of spirit counseling before your wedding. That will be true enough. From there we shall straight to the courthouse go and have the matter settled with my own father as witness; after my prolonged departure, he will be too happy to see me wed and a woman to tend the house again that he will not question it. Should you not appear by mid-morning..."

The last he left hanging, both a threat to their bargain and a promise to see to her well being. "This will not be easy for either of us, you understand. We shall face condemnation, even though what we do is legal. But in this arrangement both you and I will gain far more in the long run, and in time all gossip might be stilled." Only then his face darkened into a far more somber countenance. "There is one thing I will make clear to you now, Mirabella, one thing that you must never do. By no means are you to ever call me by the informal names of 'Ben' or 'Benjamin.' The formal 'Ebenezer' must always be first at your lips when you speak of me or address me, especially around strangers. Even should you come to love me or hate me at some later date, do not utter either of those names."

He bent low to scoop her cape from the ground as though bowing to her. Presenting the garment to her, Ebenezer quietly gave his wife-to-be her first command. "Go you now, Mirabella, and come to me on the morrow."