{"id":13805,"date":"2017-02-21T00:02:33","date_gmt":"2017-02-21T05:02:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=13805"},"modified":"2025-09-25T15:41:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T19:41:16","slug":"my-dearest-husband-by-annie-k-cowgirl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=13805","title":{"rendered":"My Dearest Husband (by Annie K Cowgirl)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary: <\/strong>The year is 1848, and\u00a0<\/strong>Marie Cartwright writes a letter to her husband for Valentine’s Day.<\/p>\n

Rating:\u00a0<\/strong>K\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Word Count:\u00a0<\/strong>649<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

My Dearest Husband<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

February 14th<\/sup>, 1848<\/strong><\/p>\n

My Dearest Husband,<\/em><\/p>\n

I know that it may seem silly for me to write to you while you lie slumbering beside me in our bed, but please, indulge me in this. Tomorrow is Saint Valentine’s Day after all, and it is a day for such letters as these to be exchanged between loved ones. Every day since the moment we first met, my love for you has grown. <\/em><\/p>\n

Do you remember what I told you when you asked me if I could bear to leave the culture, the liveliness of New Orleans for the harsh wilderness of Nevada? Well, I shall remind you, <\/em>mon cher, if you do not. I told you that I would live in a hovel and wear animal skins if only to be with you. You laughed at me when I said so, but I can say, with all honesty, that I spoke only the truth.<\/em><\/p>\n

And what a land it is, this Nevada! Never before have I seen such beauty, and all of it is untamed and pure. I may not have known why you loved this land when you brought me to the Ponderosa that first day, but now…I could not see myself living anywhere else. Oh, I may occasionally miss the hustle and bustle of New Orleans, but I would not go back there, even if I had the chance. For it is no longer home. Home is where the heart is, and my heart belongs with you, Benjamin Cartwright.<\/em><\/p>\n

You have become everything to me: my light, my world…my home. When you are here beside me, I want for nothing. There is joy and life seems to sparkle when you are here. When you are away on business, the nights are long and sleepless. I count the hours, the minutes, the seconds until we are together again.<\/em><\/p>\n

If I dream, I dream of you and what our life together will be like in the years to come. I see Adam growing into the handsome, intelligent man, that I know he will become…that he is already becoming before our very eyes. And little Hoss will grow as well\u2014I can tell already that he shall be even taller than you, <\/em>mon cher. That sweet, gentle, kind child of ours has taught me more about life than I ever thought there was to know. He is so wise.<\/em><\/p>\n

And in that same dream, I see another child. Oh, Benjamin, just think of it: our child! And even now he grows within me. The doctor confirmed it last Tuesday when we went to town for supplies; I know I should have told you before now, but I could not find the words\u2014I am no great orator.<\/em><\/p>\n

I shall give you another son. I do not know why, but I am sure that I carry a son, and he shall have my eyes and your stubbornness. Oh, he will be a handful\u2014with a double portion of my liveliness and your mischief, how could he not be? I know you are shaking your head, but you are mischievous; you cannot deny it. I have it on good authority that it was you who helped Hoss put that frog in my hatbox. It is just as well that I crushed that particular bonnet in my haste to escape your amphibious friend, I know how much you hated that hat.<\/em><\/p>\n

The sky is lightening with the promise of a new dawn, and soon you will be waking. Even now I can hear the coo of the mourning doves that nest in the pine outside our window. It is a new day. A new day with hopes, dreams, and troubles of its own. I must close, for breakfast will not make itself, and there are clothes that need mending and washing.<\/em><\/p>\n

I love you, Benjamin. I shall never stop loving you.<\/em><\/p>\n

Love your little wife,<\/em><\/p>\n

Marie Cartwright<\/em><\/p>\n

Author Note:\u00a0<\/strong>For the life of me, I couldn’t remember if Hop Sing had already joined the Cartwrights before or after Ben had married Marie, (I don’t even know if it is ever mentioned in the show or only\u00a0in fanfiction) so I opted to just leave him out of this story entirely.<\/p>\n

Written for the Valentine’s Day challenge 2017 on Bonanza Boomers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Disclaimer:\u00a0<\/strong>All publicly recognizable characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tags:\u00a0 Ben Cartwright,\u00a0Marie Cartwright<\/p>\n

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<\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

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Summary: The year is 1848, and\u00a0Marie Cartwright writes a letter to her husband for Valentine’s Day. <\/p>\n

Rating:\u00a0K\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Word Count:\u00a0649<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":159,"featured_media":15250,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[30,3,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-prequels","category-romance","category-short-stories","wpcat-30-id","wpcat-3-id","wpcat-8-id"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":1502,"today_views":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Marie-2.jpg?fit=768%2C576&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":6246,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=6246","url_meta":{"origin":13805,"position":0},"title":"My Dearest Mother (by Annie K Cowgirl)","author":"Annie K Cowgirl","date":"May 3, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0\u00a0Adam writes a letter to his mother during his last year of college. 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Rated: K+ (2,320 words)","rel":"","context":"In "Drama"","block_context":{"text":"Drama","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Heart-01.jpg?fit=370%2C584&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":29614,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=29614","url_meta":{"origin":13805,"position":5},"title":"A Simple Life (by Annie K Cowgirl)","author":"Annie K Cowgirl","date":"May 19, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary:\u00a0Marie takes a moment to contemplate her life: past, present, and future. 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