Deep in the Heart of Dixie

by Heidi Sprouse

  Chapter 9

  Dixie flitted around her little kitchen, adding the finishing touches to her pies—Mama’s pies, actually, they were her recipe—to bring to the fair. Sue Ellen and Thelma Louise had been baking up a storm and insisted Dixie join them. Jake’s mother would be making her own contributions as well which meant Jake wouldn’t miss it for the world. He’d told her the two girls he loved most were having a cook off—his heart was gone for sure.

  Dixie smiled to herself at his choice of words. He had used the word love. That she was lovable, loved by someone as amazing as Jake…it still took her by surprise. If this was all a dream, she hoped she would never wake up. A bang at the door interrupted her thoughts, followed by the loud entrance of two outrageous women. Sue Ellen wore a get-up in a yellow that was bright enough to blind the eye while Thelma Louise made her presence well known with her laughter, thick and rich as melted chocolate.

  “Dixie-honey, if those pies are any where’s near as good as they smell, you have got us beat, hands down!” Sue Ellen puffed as she made her way in, arms filled with her own baked goods. She set down the box and eyed Dixie’s outfit, shaking her head. “Unbelievable. Just look at her, Thelma Lou. The girl has got a body to die for, the face of an angel, looks good in anything, and she doesn’t even know it!” Subtle was definitely not in Sue Ellen’s vocabulary or wardrobe. She wore a yellow sundress and wide-brimmed hat, bringing to mind a big banana on the move. She’d give anything to be a natural beauty like Dixie in rolled up jeans and the simple, white peasant blouse she’d worn her first day of work. Her hair was a tumble down her back, catching fire in the sunlight when she moved. Somehow, she became prettier the longer she lived behind the guise of Dixie Mason, perhaps because she could finally wear her happiness without fear.

  Thelma Louise reached into a bowl in the sink to get a finger full of apple pie filling. “Mmmm, sugar…this is it. You’ve got a winner. You are going to take them by storm this year at the fair. They won’t forget Miss Dixie Mason, mark my words.” She scooped up two pies in her ample arms, her white sundress swaying as she hummed her way outside. “Ooee..it is going to be a hot one today. Glad I wore my sandals and white. Let’s load up the trunk of my car and head on over to that fair.”

  All three squeezed in the front. They were squeezed in tight like sardines but nobody paid any mind. More baked goods were in the back seat, making their mouths water and their stomachs rumble on the ride. “I just love the fair. Don’t you, honey?” Sue Ellen inquired cheerfully.

  Dixie dangled her hand out the car window, let the wind whip her hair back. If she was a bird, she’d get loose and fly. “I’ve only been once, when I was four. I can’t even hardly remember it.” Mama had taken her. Her heart ached for that little girl and all she missed, all Owen took from her.

  “Only once! My Lord, Dixie, you and I have a whole lot of making up to do for lost time then. You are going to do it all, in style!” Sue Ellen squeezed her arm to make her point. “We’ll hit all the vendors and shop ‘til we drop, eat greasy, gooey food that will have to be scooped out of our arteries, find time for rides, and fit in winning the bake-off.”

  The fairgrounds were thirty minutes away, giving Sue Ellen and Thelma Louise a half hour to tell Dixie everything about the fair until her head was swimming and she was bursting with enthusiasm. They bounced their way across the large field that doubled as a parking lot, the rides and the midway towering over head. Children’s laughter, music, animals, and the sound of motors revving at the truck pull washed over them the moment they got out of the car. Each woman carried a picnic basket laden with baked treats to woo the taste buds of the judges. Once in place, they were free to roam. Thelma Louise joined some friends of her own age group. “You kids don’t need an old woman like me. Go on now and have fun. I’ll see you at the ribbon ceremony.”

  Sue Ellen tugged Dixie to the ticket booth and bought them both wrist bands for the rides. “I insist, sugar. You’re my guest at this fair and I’m making sure you have the best time ever. When you were little, it was your Mama’s treat. This go around is on me!” They began a whirlwind of rides…the tilt o’ whirl, the ferris wheel, the roller coaster, you name it, they tried it.

  They’d just stepped off of a ride that shot them up in the air like a rocket, only to drop them down so fast Dixie was hunting for her stomach around the region of her toes. Someone’s hands caught her and twirled her around. “Hey, good lookin,’ what you got cookin,’ Miss Dixie Cup?” Jake was a looker himself, in jean shorts and a white t-shirt that made his tan all that darker. He dropped a quick kiss on her nose, then her lips, and wrapped an arm around Sue Ellen and planted one on her cheek. “And you’re looking mighty fine today too, Miss Sue Ellen.”

  Sue Ellen laughed and batted Jake on the head with a Chinese fan they’d picked up at one of the vendors. “You charmer. If we hadn’t been friends since diapers, and if you weren’t with Dixie, you’d have me following you around like a puppy dog. Well, kids, I’m plumb tuckered from the rides for a while. I’m going to go sit down in the shade and eat an ice cream. You two go have fun, you hear!” She slipped away before they could argue. The heat wave rolling off of the lovebirds was so intense, Sue Ellen needed a serious cool down.

  Dixie shook her head. “That wasn’t obvious, was it? What’s this Dixie Cup you’re calling me?” She leaned against a white picket fence that bordered one of the rides, her face tipped up to him expectantly. There was no doubt he was the sun in her sky.

  Jake stared down at her, thinking that she reminded him of a sunflower, blooming brightly in the sun, outshining all the rest of the blossoms far below. “Boy,” a voice whispered in his mind, “you are a goner.” Taking a breath to anchor himself, he gave her that lop-sided grin and opened those summer green eyes real wide before pouring on the honey. “Why sugar, you are the cutest, sweetest, little thing I know, just like those itty-bitty cups that come in a tiny box with a special design on each one. You can’t get anything more special than what I’ve got on this little package standing next to me.”

  How did he manage to do it every time? Her cheeks started to burn and her head was getting light. He made her forget how to talk for a moment. Dixie had to untangle her tongue. When she could catch her breath again, she asked lightly, “You been here long?”

  Jake rolled his eyes and leaned his head on her shoulder. “Have I?! We were here at the crack of dawn. Even the roosters were still tucked snug in their beds. Not only does Mama enter her culinary delights each year, but she is on the set- up committee for every, single, plumb one of the display buildings. Guess who was recruited to help lug things in, hangs things up, move things around? I feel like a pack mule and if my back goes out before the day is done, you’ll know why. The abuse I take, being the only son.”

  Dixie patted his cheek in sympathy. “Oh, you poor baby. You’ll have to have some of my pie. It has curing powers. Mama says so!” A shadow passed over her face. Mama had actually told her that about her baking on a day when Owen had been particularly rough on his wife, leaving a trail of dark fingermarks on her neck and a puffed lip. Dixie had been six and cried to see it. Mama made the pie to cheer her up but no one was there to make Mama feel better. Dixie tried but she was only a child and even when she grew up, she was never big enough to stop Owen, too scared to try.

  Jake squeezed her hand. “Where’d you go…missing your mama?” Every time he saw her hurt, he wanted to take all the shadows away and felt so helpless. Now that he knew more about her, he couldn’t help but imagine the terrible things that happened to her and her mother. It filled him with a wasted anger, unable to go back in time and set things right. He had to remind himself he could only do something about today and whatever came next.

  Dixie smiled although her eyes were glossy with unshed tears. “Yes, she’s never far from my mind, but how she would have loved all this!” She would not say more abou
t Owen. Jake had heard enough. Why make him have to deal with the trash? It was bad enough that she still had to throw it out of her mind every time it cluttered up again.

  “Then let me give you a good time for you and for your mama because I’m sure she’s looking down on you, keeping an eye out and making sure you’re all right.” She gave him a sad, little smile and nodded. Jake pulled her down the dirt lanes, watching carefully for anything that might perk her right up. He stopped when he saw her glowing at the sight of a little girl with her face buried in cotton candy. The tyke had a curtain of dark, brown curls hanging down her back, blue eyes that sparkled, and a grin that stretched from ear to ear. Her mother wiped cotton candy off her nose then her father scooped her up and set her on his shoulders, the music of her giggles trailing after her as they walked away.

  Jake’s heartache grew deeper. That little one could have been Dixie on her one visit to the fair. That little girl should have been Dixie, carefree, laughing, held by a circle of love. Jake cleared his throat and stepped up to the booth. “Two cotton candy sticks, please. I’d like one pink and one blue.” Dixie stood close by, eyes wide with wonder, watching the worker twirl the white stick round and round the machine, building the confectionary treat. Jake couldn’t get enough of watching her. For Dixie, everything was new, like seeing things through the eyes of a child. He handed the pink one to Dixie and kept the blue for himself then let himself enjoy the view. This was better than going to the movies, seeing her lean in too close and end up with pink goo all over her face. “Let me help you there, darlin.’ You’ve made a right mess of yourself.” He started at her forehead, licking the cotton candy from her eyebrows, moved down to her nose, finally landing on her lips. He licked his own in pleasure when he was done. “Nothing better than fresh made cotton candy…except when it comes with a pretty girl like you.”

  Laughter, sweet and pure, rang out and filled the air. “Jake Lee Jackson, you are shameless, just shameless. Let me try some of your blue. It’s only fair since you ate some of mine.” Dixie asked him playfully. She pulled off a piece to get a taste, tossed the gooey glob in his face and ran.

  Sputtering, wiping the sticky mess off best he could, Jake tossed it in a garbage can and ran after her, keeping sight of the flame in her hair and her white shirt in the crowd. He finally caught up with her in the alley filled with games, both of them out of breath and bent over with laughter. “You got me good, girl. You’ve made a downright mess out of me.” He quieted as he realized it was true. The girl had him turned inside out and upside down with no signs of stopping.

  Dixie stepped in close and leaned her hands on his chest. “Let me see what I can do to fix you up.” She proceeded to return his favor, taking a swipe at any spot on his face that had traces of blue, then moving to his generous mouth even though there was nothing left there. Scandalous, that’s what she had become. She was way behind schedule when it came to boys. Time to catch up.

  Jake pulse started to race and his belly twisted into knots tight as a pretzel. His toes curled up and it was hard to breathe. Oh, what this girl could do to him! She could even make him forget his name and he didn’t care. The only thing he needed to remember was this girl in his arms and he was right where he belonged. Each time he saw Dixie, Jake felt like he was coming home.

  “Well, if it isn’t Jake Lee Jackson. I still can’t believe you don’t have better taste than to go dumpster diving.” Carole Sue sneered. Laura Bell and Bobbi Jo stood close by with disdainful expressions marring their beauty. The three stood with hard smiles that looked fake, like everything else about them. They were shiny packages with all the trimmings but nothing inside the box.

  There was a blaze in Jake’s eyes, hot enough to burn Carole Sue to a cinder. “Carole Sue, my mama was right when she said someone ought to wash your mouth out with soap and put you over her knee for a spanking. I’ll be happy to oblige right now. You’re long overdue.” His voice rose in volume and he took a step closer to her. His eyes held a dangerous glitter that meant business. The girls, who weren’t good enough to be called that, turned tail and scurried away. Jake turned to see Dixie’s cheeks flaming with anger and humiliation, but there was something else he didn’t like—fear. Of him? His fingers were a feather touch on her cheek. “Don’t pay her no mind. If you want to know the truth, she feels threatened by you. She’s jealous of you because you’re prettier. She’s always tried to stomp out the competition. You know that movie, ‘Mean Girls?’ Princess there is the original. Carole Sue is just a spoiled brat who’s had a silver spoon in her mouth her whole life.”

  “I wish she’d choke on that spoon. Let me be the first to cram it down her throat.” Dixie glared after the girls, hot enough to set them on fire if they came close enough. Hands balled into fists, she looked like she could have been a Southern general if given the chance. The war might have gone the other way with Miss Dixie Mason in charge.

  “Sugar gal, you look like one, tough cookie right now. I wouldn’t want to get on your bad side. Let me see what I can do to make this up to you.” Carnies called out from every booth on either side, tempting fellas to win one for their gals. Jake stopped when he saw one that was right up his alley.

  “Step right up! Get three chances to knock down a bottle. Win your sweetheart a prize!” The man calling out was particularly rough around the edges with a scraggly beard, missing teeth, a pierced nose, and an assortment of tattoos that were not the least bit attractive. His eyes lit up in appreciation as the young couple drifted in his direction. Easy money, no doubt.

  Dixie’s expression was doubtful. “I really don’t need a prize. Don’t waste your money, Jake. Did you see that last couple? That fool boy spent about a week’s worth of wages and they walked away with something that could’ve come from the dollar store. All of these things are rigged.” She turned to leave.

  “Hold up a minute, sugar gal. I’ve got the experience and have the inside scoop with this one.” He blew on the first baseball and polished it on his shirt like it was an apple. All of his attention focused on the glass bottle that seemed much too far away. He pulled back and let it fly. There was a satisfying smash and the glass shattered to pieces.

  “All right, buddy, pick your girl a prize,” the worker told him half-heartedly. His hand swept the air, gesturing to a selection of small, pitiful prizes. They weren’t even worth any mention. A row of medium stuffed animals sat above the slim pickings found at the bottom. The best of the best dangled at the top. Jake saw hardly anyone walking around with one of those and set his sights on the best. That’s was the way he did things. Go all the way or don’t go at all.

  “I’m not done yet,” Jake told him in a slow drawl with an easy grin. He let the next ball rocket through the air with the same result. “If I’m not mistaken, that means a medium prize. Why don’t I have a go at one more?” He leaned over to give Dixie a kiss and let the last one go, making it three in a row. “Now, fancy that. This game can be won if you set your mind to it, just like anything else, right, sugar gal? Pick yourself out whatever you want, Dixie Cup!”

  Positively glaring, the man pulled down a huge, golden retriever stuffed animal. Dixie buried her face in its fur. “I’ve always wanted a real one but this is the next best thing. Thank you, Jake. I love it.” She returned the kiss on his cheek, those blue eyes shining. The clear sky above didn’t have a thing on that girl. Jake put a hand to his heart and started to playfully stagger, giving Dixie no choice but to loop his arm over her shoulders. Snug as a bug in a rug.

  It was Jake’s turn to turn red. “Ah, sugar—it was nothing. I love to make them give those prizes away. What can I win next for you—wait a minute!” He slapped his forehead after glancing at his watch. “We’ve got to hurry! It’s just about time for the ribbon ceremony for the baked goods and you’ll be taking home a prize. My taste buds don’t lie.” He grabbed Dixie’s hand and hurried her t
hrough the fairgrounds. He’d been there so many times, he knew the place with his eyes closed plus every short cut. They were huffing and puffing, red-faced and out of breath, but they made it just in time.

  A large, round, balding man with glasses on the end of his nose and rosy cheeks was walking back and forth in front of the pies, ribbons in hand. He hemmed and he hawed, and took a few more bites of each. Dixie couldn’t help but giggle. “He looks like he really enjoys the job of being the judge,” she whispered to Jake. The size of his stomach suggested this was a man who had sampled many pieces of pie in his life and enjoyed them all.

  Jake gave her a knowing grin. “Oh, yeah. Mayor Johnson loves to eat. That’s why they’ve picked him as the area expert when it comes to sampling our ladies’ finest sweets. Keep your fingers crossed, sugar. He’s about to award the ribbons.” The yellow third place ribbon went to Thelma Louise for her peach pie, anything with peaches being her specialty. The red second place ribbon went to Jake’s mother for her strawberry rhubarb. She’d be pleased. She hadn’t even placed last year and had been perfecting her recipe ever since. If Jake knew his mother, and he did, she’d be aiming for first place the following year. However, it looked like she’d best prepare herself for some serious competition. Finally, the blue ribbon for first prize was awarded to an apple pie. Not just any old apple pie, this one was a piece of heaven.

  “This creation, by a Miss Dixie Mason, is just a slice of perfection. This little gal ought to open a bakery. Where is she? I’d like to shake her hand and see if I can get a special cook when the occasion calls for it.” The mayor glanced around the room, his blue eyes sparkling with pleasure.

  “Why here she is, Mayor Johnson.” Jake called out and gave a reluctant Dixie a little nudge forward. Dixie glanced back at him uncertainly, then pasted a smile on her face and stepped out of the crowd to approach the mayor. All heads turned to follow her progress. A smattering of applause rose up. Thelma Louise, Sue Ellen, and Sara Jackson set up a good cheering section of their own while Jake’s whistle was the loudest sound of approval.

  Mayor Johnson pumped her hand with a firm, warm grasp and gave her a smile that was equally welcoming. “Honey, this is the best pie I’ve ever had and I’ve had a lot of pie in my time. About the only thing I think it needs is a heap of ice cream piled up on the side. You think about selling it and I guarantee you’ll be a success.” He placed a medal over her head to accompany her ribbon. A photographer snapped a quick shot of the smiling duo.

  Dixie beamed at his praise, smiling shyly at the applause of the crowd that had gathered. The only thing to mar the moment—Carole Sue fuming in the corner. She had not won first place for the first time in five years. She gave Dixie a look that could melt metal, turned and flounced away, leaving Dixie with the uncomfortable feeling that it wasn’t over. However, her rival was soon forgotten as women surrounded her to congratulate her and welcome her to the fair. A banter began, like a bunch of hens clucking in the barn yard, passing round recipes. All of the baked goods were cut into small samples, fresh milk from the dairy exhibit was poured, and everyone enjoyed tucking away the sweet treats.

  Dixie personally fed Jake samples of each pie, ending with hers. “I’m sorry I beat out your mama.” She sought out his mother and was relieved to see her give Dixie a wink while chatting with friends. The older woman proved to be a wonderful sport when she raised a forkful of the prize winning prize and took a great bite. Those with her followed suit.

  Jake held a hand over his heart and closed his eyes. “Oh, darling, don’t worry your pretty, little head. She’ll just ask for your recipe and recruit you to bake for her for whenever there is a need . She’ll pay you well, too. She ought to. The mayor wasn’t lying—this is incredible.” They lingered a while longer, letting their stomachs settle and then it was time to hit the rides.

  Darkness fell, colorful lights transforming the fairgrounds into a magical place. Dixie found herself sitting close to Jake on the Ferris wheel, their knees bumping, a little thrill running through her every time they went up and over, sending her stomach for a tumble. A lump of fear started in her throat and slid down fast to regions below when the ride came to a stop. They were perched at the tip top, the car rocking gently in the wind. She glanced down and her face went white with each sway of the car at such a height. “I think I’m going to be sick,” she said breathlessly and closed her eyes tightly.

  Jake took her hand. “Now, now, sugar, you’ll be fine. Breathe through your nose and don’t look down. Look up at the stars or out over the mountains…or at me.” His voice was hushed, dropping down low, his hand tightening on hers.

  Dixie opened her eyes and stared directly into the green of summertime, spring time, and Christmas trees, and everything wonderful that came to mind about that color. “It’s not so bad when I have a view like this.” She felt herself being drawn closer until her lips were stuck on his again. Her eyelids drifted down, her body went limp, and she let herself fall into him. She didn’t mind if the ride never started again. With the power this boy had inside of him, it was a wonder that the South didn’t win.

  When they finally made their way off the ride, both were burning with thirst, throats parched until they were bone dry. Jake suspected it could not be remedied with any kind of drink but he went off in search of fresh squeezed lemonade while Dixie sat down on the grandstand bleachers to stare up at the stars. They were so bright and hung so close it was as if she could reach out and pull them out of the sky. She stretched her feet out and leaned her elbows on the seat behind her. A bit of a breeze picked up, soothing after a day that had been hot enough to melt ice cream the instant it was scooped in a cone. Tipping her head back, she filled her eyes with the glittery lights from above and imagined Mama was one of them, twinkling back at her.

  “Ooh-ee, a pretty thing like you shouldn’t be sitting out here by your little, old lonesome.” A throaty voice slithered inside the shadows, the burning ember on the end of a cigarette making a red glow. A man stepped out of the darkness, his clothes smudged with dirt, stubble on his cheeks and dark hair straggling to his collar. He was tall and wiry from pushing his body in manual labor on a daily basis. His eyes glittered in the moonlight, hard dark stones in a face that was all angles. He dropped down next to her on the bench and brushed her arm with a calloused hand, making the hair rise on her skin. “What you say we take a walk, pretty girl? Find ourselves someplace more private like.”

  Dixie pulled her arm away, wary of the dangerous glint in those shadowy eyes. She’d seen those eyes before, set in a different face. Owen’s. “Leave me alone. I’m waiting for someone. He’ll be back any minute.” She wrapped her arms tightly around herself, praying it was true, debating on the wisdom of staying or running.

  He took a slow drag on his cigarette and reached out to brush a strand a hair out of her eyes. “Now, honey, we both know no one is coming for you. You might as well have a nice night with me.” He reached out and skimmed his fingers over her cheek. Dixie felt herself die a little inside.

  “Get your filthy carcass away from her or I’ll make you pay!” Jake’s voice was fire and steel all in one as he yanked the older man, at least five years his elder, maybe more, clear off the bleachers and sent him sprawling in the dirt. The drinks were forgotten, tossed to soak into the ground while Jake rounded on his opponent with the stance of a boxer. Thank God Daddy thought boxing, along with fencing, were essential to a Southern boy’s education. Hours of practice at the punching bag and with an instructor made this a piece of cake. Hardly worth breaking a sweat. Tell that to Jake’s heart, getting ready to gallop straight out of his chest.

  The stranger hauled himself up to his feet and stood over Jake with the advantage of several inches. “I’d like to see you try, boy. I’m older than you and I’ve worked hard every day of my life. Give it your best shot. You don’t look like you’ve done much more than pick
up a silver spoon or two.”

  Looks were deceiving. Just because Jake came from a privileged background, that did not mean he didn’t push his body to the limits. He made sure to do any kind of labor around his store rather than hire out. It gave him the satisfaction of making it his own. Beneath the polish and good clothes, there were better bones and hard muscle. One couldn’t forget those distinguished ancestors either, coursing through his blood. He pulled back and launched a solid punch to the older man’s jaw.

  With a cry of surprise, the man threw himself at Jake. In the grunting and scuffle, neither saw Dixie slip away. It didn’t take long. Jake sent the message loud and clear not to mess with him or his girl. Rubbing at his sore jaw, he stood firmly in place, shoulders set until the threat scuttled off with his tail between his legs to go back to one of the carny trailers. “It’s all right, sugar gal. He won’t bother you again.” Jake turned around but no one was there. Heart hammering in his chest, he began to search. Never a dull moment around this one.

  He found her curled up with her arms around her knees, hugging them tightly, beneath the grandstand. “Dixie, what are you doing hiding back here? That good for nothing is gone. I would never let him hurt you.” He crept under the bleachers and sat down beside her, mirrored her position, and waited.

  Her eyes were hidden in the shadows, her voice small. “It was the noise that always got to me…the yelling, the sound of his fists hitting her, skin on skin, Mama’s crying. No matter how I hid, I couldn’t get away from the noise.” She pressed her head to her knees. Her shaking, begun when that scum first laid eyes on her, couldn’t seem to stop.

  Cautiously, Jake reached out and took her hand. “No more hiding, Dixie. I’m sorry about just now. I had to make a little ruckus. The likes of him need a big sound to scare him off. I would never hurt you or let you be hurt.”

  She squeezed his hand with a grip that became fierce. When she turned, the moonlight caught her eyes and lit up. Her feelings ran strong. “I know. There’s been no one else like you. You’re my Prince Charming. I can count on you, no matter what.”