The Secret Healer(58)
“And if I must go?”
“Must you?”
Johannes shrugged. “It’s possible.”
A shiver ran down Madlen’s spine; she didn’t know what to say.
“Maria. Would you come with me?”
She shrugged. “I can’t.”
He laid a finger on his lips. “Would you consider coming with me as my wife?”
She looked up, her eyes wide open in surprise. “Do you mean it?”
“Yes, I want to marry you.”
She pressed her lips together as she thought it over feverishly. “What do your parents say? We’re not in the same social class. And what about Agathe?”
“Don’t worry about my parents or Agathe. Do you want to marry me?” Johannes searched her face.
“Yes,” she whispered.
Overjoyed, he pulled her close, kissed her, wrapped his arms around her, and squeezed her tight for several minutes. Again and again, his lips sought hers, until neither one of them could breathe.
“You’ve made me the happiest man in the world.”
They sat there for a long time. Only when it got dark did Johannes bring Madlen home. They said good-bye with a long kiss at the front door. Madlen finally broke away from his embrace and went inside. As she closed the door, she giggled when she heard Johannes emit a cry of jubilation.
“What’s so funny?” Agathe said as she stepped out of the sewing room.
“Agathe.” Madlen hugged her aunt’s neck. “I’m so very happy.”
“I’m glad. Can you tell me why?”
“Johannes wants to marry me.” Madlen was almost a little scared what her aunt’s reaction would be. But after a split second, she shouted joyously.
“Really?” She hugged Madlen and hopped up and down with her. “I’m so thrilled for you. He is a wonderful man. I’ll give you a dowry. Maybe not as much as a person of his standing might expect, but enough.” The women embraced again happily.
“Thank you so much.” Madlen gave her aunt a peck on each cheek. They shared the news with Roswitha when she came out of the kitchen.
“You deserve to be happy,” Roswitha said as she stroked Madlen’s hair. “And if my Sander doesn’t ask me soon, I’ll sort him out good and proper.”
That evening, the women drank so much spiced wine that they suffered terrible headaches the next day. But even that wasn’t enough to diminish their joy. They imagined the wedding celebration, along with the proper dress and the food that would be served. Only for a second did the thought occur to her that Johannes didn’t even know her real name. Would this be her downfall? She didn’t want to think about it. She wanted to enjoy the lovely moment.
“But we’ll miss you so much here,” Agathe said with a smile.
“Why?” Madlen seemed puzzled.
“Well, you’ll be living in your new husband’s house.”
“I never even thought about that.” Madlen’s expression became serious. “But I don’t want to leave.”
“That’s part of married life.”
Madlen seemed pensive. “But I can still keep on sewing dresses, right?”
“Of course. You’re a very talented seamstress.”
“Then I’ll spend my days here and go back to Johannes in the evening.”
“I don’t think it’s that easy,” Roswitha warned. “Who’s going to run the household when you’re always here?”
“A maid?” Madlen suggested stubbornly.
“We shouldn’t worry about this. The most important thing is that you have a man you love. You do love him, right?”
Madlen’s face turned red. “More than I can say.”
The wedding took place just two weeks later. It wasn’t too lavish, just a nice gathering at the Goldmanns’ house, focusing on the young pair instead of fostering business contacts, as was often customary in these social circles. Johannes needed a few days to persuade his parents to give him their blessing to marry a woman below his family’s social standing. When they agreed, Madlen was overjoyed. Her only regret was having to lie to everyone about her past. She had talked about this for a long time with Agathe, and they both came up with a detailed, though false, history of Madlen’s life that they would strictly adhere to.
Johannes agreed, per Madlen’s request, to get a foothold as a lawyer in Worms. So far, it had been difficult because of the ongoing city wars. People had little reason to have their legal affairs clarified when the decision could become invalid under the next leader. So Johannes contented himself by assisting his father with business negotiations; he was also quite happy to spend time with his new wife.