Try

Part 1 of 8

Staring out across the open Kansas prairie, Matilda revels in the feel of the warm breeze sweeping across her face just enough to whisp a few strands of her hair. Once upon a time, she used to think she could see all around the world because of how flat the land is, but then again it is hard to explain the whole of the world to a child who only sees flat landscapes. She loves the prairie that is western Kansas and equally respects the unforgiving Mother Nature. She loves looking out and being able to see miles of fields, an occasional house surrounded by trees, and perhaps even farmers in the fields. Just last week, Matilda and her brother went to the aid of a neighbor who was losing everything in a fire. While his house burned, the siblings took care of the surrounding fields because they felt helpless. Nothing was planted in the fields closest to the house, but if they did not move fast the fire would spread to the growing wheat just beyond. It was her brother who had spotted the fire from his house. Had the landscape not been flat, he would not have seen it. With a quick message to her, by the time he got to her house, she was already hooking on the tractors to the right implements and they were on the road within five minutes. Sadly, the house was lost, but the local farmers have already rallied to fund a bigger and better one with all the furnishings. Insurance did cover some of the cost, but for a family who was always quick to help everyone else, it only seemed right to help them out more.

No one in their right mind would have thought the Gilbert siblings would grow out of their rebellious streak as youngsters, but sure enough, life caught up. In the matter of one summer, Morgan and Matilda went from being grounded for launching fireworks off the school roof on the last day of school, to taking up the responsibility of farm life with their parents after the sudden deaths of their grandparents. They were close with and spoiled by, their grandparents, and losing them was a hard blow to then ten and twelve-year-old siblings. Morgan handled his anger and pain by outbursts, while Matilda kept everything inside. They have always been that way from that summer on, two sides to the same coin.

Matilda smiles as the sun begins to turn the sky orange and red as it sinks to the ground opposite her. She takes another drink of her hot chocolate and the light shines off of the mistake on her left hand. It is a slow sinking feeling that drops her insides and prickles at her heart. How could she have been so stupid and careless? She was never one for alcohol before, and why she felt that night she needed to have any sort of fun, was beyond her. She paid for it in ways she never could have expected.

One weekend away in Vegas for a friend's bachelorette party, and somehow Matilda ends up being the one married. Becky, the ringleader bride, thought the whole situation was hilarious and made sure to document the entire thing over her social media accounts. People knew about it before Matilda did, thanks to the massive hangover fueled blackout. Everyone back home knew she was married before she ever pulled back into her driveway. She has barely left the house since she got back, but that has not stopped people from dropping by to offer congratulations and try for more gossip to spread.

Morgan had been furious, more than Matilda had ever seen in her brother. Of course, he was not angry at her, but he should have been. He vowed to track down every guy who was in that hotel until he found the right one so that she could get a divorce. Everything about that word makes her skin crawl. It goes against everything she has ever believed. She believed in the power of marriage that lasts a lifetime and the love that lasts an eternity. Never in her life could she have thought something like this would happen to her. This kind of thing happens to people who are crazy and adventurous, not people who just happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. She cannot stand the thought of getting a divorce after only a month, but then again how can she stay married to a man she has known for less than a day? She has not even seen or talked to him since she ran out of his hotel room.