Snow on Magnolias

by Hattie Mae

  Rose moved up to get a better look at the place of hiding when she stumbled on a rug and started to fall.

  Sam’s strong arms stopped her from hitting her head. He held her against his chest. So tightly she could hardly breathe, but she dared not move. If she did it would break the spell. And right now it felt good, real good, and too right to be let go. She inhaled. Fresh pine, or was it cedar? His chest was solid like his arms. Strong enough to protect the people he loved. She could hear the beating of his heart as it quickened and became louder. Rose closed her eyes. What would it be like to have someone to always be there to catch you when you fell?

  “Are you okay, Rose?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. Expecting him to let her go he still held her close.

  His breath evened out before he released his hold on her. “You need to be careful.”

  Rose straightened her shirt and broke eye contact with Sam. Yes, indeed she would have to be very careful.

  “I need to get back to work. That concludes the two-bit tour. When I have more time, I’ll show you more. If you have any questions let me know.” He started out of the room but turned back. “If you’re interested, we have some old journals in my office you could read. I would rather you didn’t remove them, they are important to our family.”

  “Thanks, Sam. You don’t know how much this has helped. Now if you will excuse me, I want to write some of this information down.” Rose bounded up the steps. Not sure if she was running to her work or away from Sam.

  Sam wiped the sweat off his face and was met with her scent still on his hands. He could still feel the softness of her skin and the frailness of her body as it was pressed against his. And those damn green eyes. They would have to be the color of new spring. Eyes always searching for approval. He couldn’t shake them from his mind. All he thought about was protecting her.

  Rose made a man want to make her happy and keep her safe. But it was very clear to him that he was not that man. He could not take those chances, not with his daughters. Not with the welfare of all of his family. He would not. He just needed to keep his distance, and for goodness sake avoid being alone with her. He had to get back to work.

  “Lewis, where are Preston, Randy and Rusty. The plan was to check out the bins this afternoon. If they’ve gone off somewhere, I swear--”

  “Hold on, Sam. What’s got you on the warpath? Rusty and Randy have gone into town to get some parts for the combine. We’ve checked out all the bins except this one, so settle down.”

  Sam spat on the ground. Trying to remove the nasty taste of guilt from his mouth. His shortcomings were not his brother’s fault. He was just the closest one for Sam to unload his rant. “Sorry, Lewis. It’s that damn woman.”

  Lewis wiped his greasy hands on the red cloth hanging from his jeans. “What’s got you so worked up? What damn woman? Rose?”

  “Yes. Who else, Rose? I knew she would be trouble, with her red hair and green eyes.”

  “What did she do this time? Run away again?”

  Sam pretended to check out the door to the bin.

  “No. She’s just so needy. I don’t know, Lewis. She just rubs me the wrong way. You know.”

  A large grin spread across Lewis’s face. “Yeah, I do know, little brother.”

  Sam caught the grin on his brother’s face before Lewis could wipe it away. “Now don’t start getting ideas. I knew I shouldn’t have said anything to you.” Sam walked around to the other side of the bin. “I’ll be glad when this season is over and my life returns to normal. Whatever normal is.”

  “Slow down a minute, Sam. Maybe this is normal, if you have feelings for this woman, then what is more normal than that?”

  “I never said I had feelings for Rose. Don’t be putting words in my mouth.” Sam removed his cap and ran his hand over his head. “I don’t need another woman in my life. I can take care of things myself.”

  “Can you? Maybe it’s time you stop licking your wounds and give some thought about what your girls might need, little brother.”

  Sam’s tense muscles in his jaw hardened to stone as he looked at his oldest brother, his voice shook as he spoke. “Shut up, Lewis, you don’t know what you’re talking about. The girls are what are always on my mind, the first thing in the morning and the last thing to cross my mind and heart at night. So don’t even try to pretend you know what worries me on a daily basis or how I feel about anyone.” He pulled his cap on his head and balled his hands into a fist.

  “What are you going to do, hit me? Just hear me out and I won’t say another word.”

  Sam was breathing hard. He had gotten mad at his brothers before, but this time was different, and he didn’t even know why. Sometimes he was easy to anger but always quick to get over it, but not this time.

  “Go ahead, say your piece. Then never give me advice about what I need again.” Sam relaxed his hands.

  Lewis lowered his voice.

  “Sam, all I want to say is consider what your daughters are missing. Sure they get a lot of love from all of us. And Odelia is great with them. But think back, Sam. We grew up without a mother, and it’s hard. Damn hard. They give a child something no one else can. Especially, for little girls. They need someone to fuss over their hair, wipe away their tears and give them advice about boys. They will soon ask questions that only another female can answer, if they haven’t already.”

  “That woman is not Rose. She is not the motherly type. Thank you for being concerned. But I can do all those things myself. You remember how it was when Lisa left. I will not be left to put Lizzy’s and Bea’s world back together again.”

  “Not all women are like Lisa.”

  “I know that. But in all honesty, you scooped up one of the last good ones. And frankly, I don’t have the energy or the leisure to sort them out. This one’s good, this one’s bad, this one might work. No thank you, what a nightmare that would be.” Sam turned to leave. “I’m going to check the fields. See you at supper.”

  Lewis was right about one thing. It was hard growing up without a mother. Was he being selfish? Sam shook his head, and walked a little faster, trying to outrun his thoughts. No, his instinct was right. He’d been down that road and he could not, no, he would not, chance love for another woman again.

  Rose spent the rest of the afternoon hunched over her laptop. Fingers flew as the words flowed. A soft knock stopped her concentration.

  “Odelia said to tell you that dinner would be ready in about thirty minutes,” Bea said as she peeked around Rose to the mess of letters on the floor. Lizzy came running up behind her and almost bumped into her.

  “You made a big mess, Rose.” Lizzy walked around Bea and came and stood in the middle of the letters. “Did you write all these letters?”

  Rose sat on the floor and started gathering the letters into small stacks in the top of the trunk. “These are Aunt Odelia’s private letters to a soldier she once knew. Do you two want to help me pick them up and stack them nicely?”

  Bea sat on the floor next to Rose and picked up an open letter. “Are these goofy love letters or something?”

  “You could say that they are love letters, but I would not classify them as goofy. They are very important to her, and it would make her sad if we tore one or misplaced one. See if you can stack them in the piles I started. They are by date order. May 1980, over here and June here. Understand?”

  “Yes, I understand. I can read you know.” Bea gave Rose a frustrated look.

  Rose chose to ignore Bea’s sour disposition. “Lizzy why don’t you place them neatly in the trunk when we hand them to you?”

  “Okay.” Lizzy knelt on the floor and smiled up at Rose. “Tell us one of your stories, Miss Rose.”

  “My stories are for grown-ups.” When she looked at Lizzy’s disappointed face she added, “But I could tell you one about a doll. A very special doll, if you like.”

  “Yes, yes, please do,” Lizzy begged. Bea rolled her eyes.

  As they worked Rose told
the story that played out in her head.

  “Once there was a little girl, much your size Lizzy, who moved to a new house with her parents. They moved from a small house in a large city to a very large house way back in the country a long way to a small town. The little girl was lonely. They didn’t have neighbors for miles around. She was very sad. One day her grandmother came to visit. She brought the little girl a present. When she opened the box she found a beautiful doll, just like your Miss Abby, Lizzy. But this doll could do magic. She could grant any wish the little girl might ask. The first thing she asked for was a big sister to share all her dreams with. And, poof, she had a big sister who looks a lot like Bea when she smiles. And the magical thing about that wish was that the little girl was never lonely again. And the two sisters’ wishes all came true.”

  Bea huffed and looked up at Rose. “Did you read that somewhere or what?” she asked.

  “No, I made it up. Like I do my books. Did you like it?”

  “In your head? You just made that story up in your head?” Bea shook her head in disbelief.

  “No, Bea. Didn’t you hear the story? She got it out of her heart. The story is about you, isn’t it Rose? Because all wishes come true in your heart, right?”

  Lizzy put her small arm around Rose’s shoulders.

  “You’re a smart little girl, Lizzy. I guess some of that story was about me. But all my wishes have not come true. But I keep wishing. Well that’s the last of the letters. Thank you both so much for helping me. Why don’t you go wash up for dinner, and I will join you soon.”

  How could such a little person understand something Rose had tried to understand for years? She had looked for something magic to make her dreams come true, but the only magic she’d found came from her own making. Somewhere along the way she had stopped believing in magic. Maybe it was time to believe again, she thought as she placed the last letter she was holding in the trunk. Romance could start with Odelia’s letters.

  Bea and Lizzy came to Rose’s room every afternoon to help her. Rose had talked to Sam and picked Bea up some books at the library. They included some of the classics that she’d read over and over when she was Bea’s age.

  “If you really want to be a writer one day, Bea, this is the first step, read, read and read some more. When you finish those, we can go to a book store in the nearest city and buy some you pick out yourself.”

  Bea grunted a thank you. But Rose saw the interest in her eyes. She even caught Bea smiling every now and then as she read.

  Rose had picked up a couple of drawing books and told Lizzy she could be an illustrator. Lizzy would lay on her stomach on the floor, her little tongue working so hard as her little fingers drew one picture after another.

  While the girls drew and read, Rose looked up web sites with information on missing persons. Somehow she was driven to help her aunt with her dream. Mostly she came up against a dead end. Wilson James proved to be a very popular name. Could she find out what had happen to him? Could she help make Aunt Odelia’s dreams come true? Or did the truth lie in what Sam said? Maybe Wilson didn’t want to be found. Or maybe he was dead. No matter. She didn’t have to tell anyone what she found out until she knew if the news would do more harm than good. Her aunt should know. She needed to know.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “Hey Sam, when I was in town this morning Mr. Chesson told me that a cousin of Fred Poole has a nearly new combine he’s willing to sell at a great price. He plans to take it to an auction in Mississippi this weekend. If you want to look at it, I have his phone number,” Randy said.

  “Man, that could be the answer we were trying to settle on brother.” Lewis pointed his fork at Sam. “The money it will take to fix the number two combine is going to be a lot, and then it’s so old we’re not sure it will hold. I’d go, but I don’t really want to leave Susan.”

  “I’ll see what Preston has planned for this weekend when he gets in from the field.” Sam stood and stretched. “Where is everyone this morning?

  “Odelia and the girls left early this morning, something about making some sort of surprise for Susan.” Lewis grinned. “If you are asking about Rose, she met me on the path to visit Susan this morning. Susan sure likes that little lady. In fact, she’s a likeable person, don’t you think, little brother? And she’s not hard on the eyes either.”

  Sam saw the twinkle in Lewis’s eyes. “Don’t start with me Lewis. Come on we have work to do.”

  “Rose I’m so happy to see you and we have a couple of hours to ourselves. What’s that in your hand?”

  Susan sat in her chaise wearing a pale blue lounge dress. Rose’s heart filled at how her new friend’s eyes lit up with excitement to have company. She and Susan had hit it off the first time they met; she was so easy to talk to. Maybe this was what it felt like to have a sister.

  Rose relaxed in the chair next to Susan then removed her shoes and curled her feet under her. “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to visit in a couple of days, but my new book is so much fun. The pages are just flying, and I didn’t want to stop the flow.”

  “Oh, that’s great, I can’t wait to read it. I so enjoyed the last book. You are very talented, Rose. The characters seem to walk off the page, and I find myself thinking about them long after I finish the book. I hope you know how talented you are. I could never do what you do.”

  “That means a lot to me, no one but my editor and some of my readers have told me I was talented.” Rose swallowed the lump in her throat and remembered the letter of her aunt she had permission to show Susan.

  “My story took off with the help of Aunt Odelia and her love story. Have you ever heard it?”

  “No.” Susan sat up a little taller, put her hand on her chest and almost squealed with delight. “Our Odelia has a love story? Please share and don’t you dare leave out any details.”

  Rose recited the story and ended with the love letters. “I brought you one to read. Aunt Odelia said it was okay. Oh, Susan, the letters are all so lovely. I feel that I have known these two people all their lives. They had such strong love for each other.”

  As Susan read the letter silent tears glided down her cheeks and raw emotions flooded her face. “Odelia never heard from him? Never heard if he is alive or dead? How very sad, but she’s kept the faith and has kept her promise.”

  “I get so sad when I think of her not knowing. She has a little lime colored chair that sits in front of the window in her bedroom. It faces the outside, and the thought of her sitting and watching and waiting breaks my heart.” Rose sighed.

  “There’s more that I have to tell you Susan.” Rose felt her heart quicken as she sat on the edge of her chair. “I think I’ve found him. I won’t know, of course, until I talk to him, but I really think it’s him. Same age, same military background, and the best part, he’s not that far away.”

  “You mean Wilson? You think you have found Wilson? What does Odelia say?”

  “Oh, she doesn’t know I found him. She doesn’t even know I’ve been looking for him. No one knows. I don’t want to tell her until I know for sure; I don’t want to give her false hope. This might be the wrong Wilson.” Rose wrapped her arms around her body, she wanted to find this man more than she’d wanted anything in a long while. “I have to somehow get Sam to let me go away this weekend, and after he got mad at me for last weekend, I have to plan my next move carefully.”

  Rose walked to the drop leaf tea wagon and poured them each a cup of tea, picked up a couple of cookies that Odelia had sent to Susan and took the letter back. “What do you think? Am I being foolish? I don’t want to open a can of worms and cause anyone pain.”

  “Honey, if you were Odelia, would you want to know? No matter what the answer is? I would. The thought of not knowing if Lewis was alive or dead, happy or unhappy, would cause me a slow death.” Susan patted her round stomach. “If it wasn’t for this little one, I would be right there with you. Do you think he’s married with a dozen kids? Or do you think he just fell out
of love with Odelia?”

  “I don’t think a love like theirs would ever die. But who am I to say, with my track record?” Rose covered her heart with her hand, “I think if I had someone that loved me like that I would be very much like Aunt Odelia and sit in my chair by the window and pray he would walk back into my life.”

  Susan put her head down for a moment. “You know, Rose, I think something happened to Wilson that he didn’t want to burden Odelia with. You know men. The macho in them, in his man-mind he probably thought it would be best for her if she did not know. Men. Don’t they know that a woman that devoted will pine for him for as long as she lives? So even if he is married with a dozen kids, I think Odelia still needs to know.”

  Rose and Susan’s chat ended when two boisterous voices filtered in from the porch and spilled into the hallway.

  “Did you see how fast that heifer hauled ass to the pasture when that rooster got after her? Man that chicken thought he was as big as an ostrich, he certainly was all feathered up. I haven’t laughed that hard in I don’t know when.”

  “Wonder what that heifer did to upset him so?” One could tell from the sound that Lewis’s laughter started deep in his boots and traveled all the way up his body.

  “Who knows, maybe she just looked at him wrong. Man that felt good.” Sam motioned to Lewis with his finger to his lips. “We better keep it down, Susan might be resting.” Susan’s voice traveled down the hall. “Who could rest with all that noise? Besides I have very important company. Come and join us.”

  Lewis walked up to his wife, hat in hand and a gleam in his eyes. “Hey beautiful, how do you feel?”

  Rose knew she should look away and give them privacy, but the sweetness of the way they gazed at each other drew her in. She had to hold back a sigh when Lewis gave Susan the lightest of kisses all over her face.