Ezekiel didn’t need to hear the words. He knew them. He’d heard them his whole life, the way folks treated difference like entertainment.
But Adelaide didn’t look ashamed.
That was what unsettled him most.
Her eyes weren’t downcast. They weren’t watery with resignation. They were clear. Sharp. Almost… amused.
Ezekiel kept thinking about the cow.
Slade’s “finest breeding cow,” waiting in Slade’s barn like a promise with a price tag.
A Holstein. Fat and healthy. Worth more than everything Ezekiel currently owned combined.
One animal that could mean the difference between losing everything and clawing his way back.
When the preacher asked Adelaide if she took Ezekiel Marsh as her husband, she didn’t hesitate.
“I do,” she said, firm as hammer blows.
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