by Londyn Skye
“Even though William wasn’t my real daddy, I found myself feelin’ that way about him. He could do no wrong in my eyes. What you’re describin’ is certainly the true definition of a daddy’s girl.”
James smiled. “Be it this time around, or in the future, that’s exactly what I want one day.”
Lily laughed softly.
“What’s so funny?”
“Just hard to imagine what in the world a big strong man like you would do with a little girl?”
“Love her, hold ’er close to me, read to ’er, teach ’er to fish, play with ’er, dance with ’er, and pretty much whateva’ else she demands ‘a me, ’cause I’m certain I’d neva’ have the strength to say no.”
“I believe it,” Lily giggled.
“But what I’d wanna show my little girl most is…” James began gently caressing Lily’s face. “How much I love her motha’,” he whispered. “I hope to be an example of the sort ‘a man she’d wanna grow up and marry one day.”
“Well, now how in the hell can I argue against that?”
“You can’t,” James replied, playfully biting Lily’s earlobe.
“I reluctantly admit that I might be forced to agree with you.”
“Wait a minute … You mean I actually won an argument against you?”
“There’s a first time for everything, I s’ppose … even if it has everything to do with luck,” she teased. “But don’t you let it go swellin’ that head ‘a yours.”
“Too late, I can already feel this Stetson gettin’ tighta’ on my head.”
Lily laughed, snatched his hat off and hit him with it. “I still say it’s a boy! That! I will win for sure! My winnin’ streak will resume!”
“That! You are wrong about! Just as wrong as those ol’ dried-up pancakes you’re always tryna force me to eat!” James fought back sarcastically.
Lily burst out laughing and hit him playfully on the shoulder again. “You sho’ be eatin’ the hell outta those ol’ dried-up pancakes when I make ’em,” she retaliated.
“Only ’cause I feel sorry for you,” James teased.
“Mm-hmm!”
“Doesn’t matta’ who’s right and who’s wrong this time around anyway. We’ll both get what we want in due time.” James grabbed Lily’s stomach firmly with both hands. “’Cause this baby right here is just the first ‘a twelve!” he boasted proudly.
“TWELVE!” Lily yelped, damn near breaking her neck to turn around and look at him.
James looked at Lily’s face and burst out laughing again. “You wanna be with me for the rest ‘a your life, don’t ya’?”
“Of course.”
“Well then that means you’re stuck deliverin’ me a family ‘a twelve. That’s part ‘a the rules ‘a life, Miss Lily. You gotta do what ya’ man wants.”
“I don’t know what rule book you been readin’, but you need to burn it!”
James laughed again.
“Sounds like you might need to consida’ polygamy,” Lily teased. “’Cause ain’t no way in hell that many humans are walkin’ outta this body,” she joked. “Twelve kids?! That ain’t no family! That’s a damn village!”
“The Adams village.” James stretched his hands in front of him like he was picturing it. “I think I’ll have that embossed on our gates. That’ll look great, don’t you think?”
“I think you done lost yo’ damn mind!” Lily laughed.
“Oh, come on, I’m serious. Can’t you just see it?” James continued, despite Lily’s laughter. “I’m envisionin’ eight boys and four little girls.”
“Well, why not six and six?” Lily asked, further encouraging his ridiculous make-believe story.
“Nope. I need two boys to take care of each ‘a my little girls at all times.”
“Oh, that’s your plan, huh?” Lily smiled, still going along with his foolishness.
“Precisely! James the second through the ninth have to take care of all four of our little flowa’s.”
“James the second through the ninth?!” Lily questioned.
“You wanted to name our first son afta’ me, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Well, his seven brotha’s would be jealous if I don’t give ’em my name too,” James joked.
“Don’t you think that’ll get just a little confusin’ havin’ nine people named James in the house?”
“That’s why we call ’em by numba’s, Lily,” he said, kissing her on the cheek. “Problem solved!”
Lily shook her head and began giggling as he continued his outrageous story.
“Ya’ see, James numba’s two and three can take care ‘a Rose. Listen it’s easy.” He cleared his throat. “Two and Three! Get your asses in here boys! Take Rose outside to play!” he pretended to yell.
“Rose? I love it!” Lily replied with a laugh. “It’s about the only sane thing you’ve said thus far. Go on, what about the otha’s?” she asked, prompting him to finish the story that she suddenly found hysterically funny.
“Well, then there’s four and five. They can take care of, umm, Lilac … We can call ’er Lila for short.”
“Okay and…”
“Then six and seven can take care of, umm … Daisy! Yes, Daisy!” James exclaimed after struggling to think of another flower. “Six and seven get y’ur little asses outside and go push Daisy on the swing!”
Lily was continuously giggling while shaking her head.
“What’s so funny? We’re discussing the future of our family. This is serious business, Lily,” James said sarcastically.
“I’m eva’ so sorry,” she replied, trying unsuccessfully to suppress her laughter. “Continue.”
“Eight and nine, get y’ur asses in here and read a book to, umm … umm, Daffodil!”
Lily’s giggle turned into a burst of laughter. “There is no waaay on God’s green earth I’m namin’ my child Daffodil!”
“Why not?” James asked. “We can call ’er Daffy for short.”
Lily’s laugh suddenly escalated into silent bursts of breath as tears streamed down her face. “Daaaffy!” she spat through her laughter.
James shook his head. “I’m appalled that you’re laughin’ at the pretty names I chose,” he replied, folding his arms across his chest, feigning anger. He then smiled after Lily came down from her hysteria, feeling happy to have brought that sort of emotion out of her for a change. “It’s wonderful to hear you laughin’ again,” he said as he gazed at her.
“It’s wonderful to feel like laughin’ again,” Lily replied, wiping the laughter tears from beneath her eyes. “I sho’ needed that.” She kissed James and then stood up to stretch her aching back and get the blood flowing back to her numb legs. She walked over and gazed out at the rushing water in the creek. James walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Do you realize there ain’t one bad thing that’s eva’ happened to us out here? Feels like God gave us these few little acres where we’d always be protected from evil … like our own little childhood paradise. I look around, and I’m inundated with a rush ‘a happy memories,” Lily commented.
“Me too.” James briefly pointed to a tree. “Standin’ right ova’ there, I finally got up the nerve to speak to you for the very first time. I can recall that moment so vividly.”
“Mm-hmm, me too. I’s sittin’ on that log ova’ yonda’, just mindin’ my own business, playin’ with Wilbur while you were spyin’ on me,” Lily teased.
“I couldn’t help it. Your beauty had me mesmerized, Miss Lily. Felt like you’d cast a hypnotic spell on me. No matta’ how hard I tried, I just couldn’t pull my eyes away from you, get my mouth to form words, or stop myself from followin’ you around.”
Lily blushed and laughed softly.
“It’s true. It wasn’t just your beauty, though. Seein’ you out here playin’ with Wilbur, climbin’ trees, and sword fightin’ with me made me realize how truly different you were from all the otha’ girls. I’s enamored by you. You had me
thinkin’ about you all day long. On the way to school, at school, on the way home from school. This unique new girl I’d just met was always in my thoughts. I even dreamt about you. Wheneva’ I’d see you cryin’ about your motha’, I’d get down on my knees and beg God for you to see ’er again, because your pain was startin’ to feel like my pain. I suddenly found myself wantin’ to move the heavens and the earth to see you back into her arms again.”
“I can’t even put into words how much that meant to me … still does,” Lily replied, caressing James’s arms.
“All the things we’ve shared, the games we’ve played, the stories we’ve read, and the time we’ve spent togetha’ since then has all been so priceless to me,” James continued. “From the very moment I met you here, standin’ in this very spot fifteen years ago, you’ve done nothin’ but bring immense joy and happiness into my life.” He turned Lily around and got down on his knee. “Includin’ this baby,” he said, planting a lingering kiss on her stomach.
Lily closed her eyes, feeling a sudden rush of butterflies.
After his tender kiss, James reached in his pocket, and nervously pulled out a ring box. With a shaky hand, he opened the lid and raised it toward Lily. “Now, I wanna spend the rest ‘a my days doin’ everything in my powa’ to bring the same joy and happiness into your life that you’ve brought into mine.”
Tears began to form in Lily’s eyes as she gazed at the precious gem in front of her.
“This ring is just as special to me as you are,” James said, nervously taking a hold of Lily’s hand. “It was my grandmotha’s,” he explained, as he briefly thought back to the moment that gave it such sentimental value …
A few hours after James and Lily had collectively decided to share his birthday, James’s mother had come into his room to bid him goodnight. He was sitting up with his back against the headboard, and she climbed onto his bed as she always did during her nightly visit to his room. Despite just turning ten years old, James had yet to let go of the desire to snuggle up next to his mother.
“You’re my favorite little boy in the whole entire world,” his mother had said as she kissed him on the forehead. “Have I eva’ told you that?”
James smiled and snuggled closer to her. “Every night mama.”
Elizabeth placed a finger to her lips. “Don’t tell your brotha’s,” she whispered with a smile.
“I know. It’s our little secret,” James whispered back.
“That’s right.” She kissed him again. “So, did you enjoy your birthday party today?”
“Yeah, it was fun, but…”
“But what, sweetheart?”
“Neva’ mind.”
“Come on.” Elizabeth slid her arm around James’s shoulder and jostled his body a bit. “We tell our secrets at night to each otha’, right? Whateva’ we say in this room neva’ leaves this room, rememba’? No trouble and no punishments for whateva’s on your mind.”
“I know but…”
“No ‘buts’… come on, lemme hear it.”
“Well, it’s just that … I-I just wish Lily could’ve participated in the party.”
“I know, but Auntie has to teach ’er what to do durin’ family gatherin’s.”
“But she’s a kid … like me. I don’t see why she can’t just be free to play sometimes.”
“I know you don’t fully unda’stand it, James. But that’s just the way it is for someone like her.”
“Well, it’s stupid if you ask me.”
“Truth be told, I couldn’t agree with ya’ more.” The amount of compassion James possessed was amazing to Elizabeth, especially considering who his father was. That fact made her especially curious about something else she had been eager to know the answer to. “Do you think Lily’s pretty, James?” she finally asked.
James immediately began blushing like his mother had never seen before. “Nooo,” he answered sheepishly.
“Ahh, I see.” Elizabeth could easily sense that her son was far too embarrassed to tell the truth. She had seen the way that James’s head automatically swiveled in every direction Lily walked. She always smiled at the way his big beautiful blue eyes rarely blinked whenever Lily was in his field of view, gazing at her with his mouth partially agape like he had been hypnotized by her beauty. Even though James had just denied his attraction to Lily, his actions had already given away the truth to his mother. Being a woman, Elizabeth knew that look in a man’s eyes … even if those eyes belonged to an ten-year-old boy. “You sure about that?” she questioned James again.
Images of the first time James ever saw Lily began flashing in his mind. There was not one thing he did not find beautiful about her. But even while he was free to reveal his secrets to his mother, he felt the need to keep that to himself. “Umm, yeah, I’m sure.”
“Okay. But if you do eva’ decide you think Lily’s pretty, don’t eva’ tell your pa how you feel about ’er, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Promise me, okay?”
“I promise.”
“Good. Now, go on and lay down,” Elizabeth said as she got out of the bed and lifted up the covers for James to slide under. “Goodnight, birthday boy.” She kissed him, blew out his oil lamp, and proceeded to leave.
“Mama?” James called out to her when she was near the door.
She stopped and turned around. “Yes?”
“If I did think Lily was pretty … if,” James emphasized. “I wouldn’t be able to marry her, would I?” he asked, a hint of sadness in his voice.
His mother came back over and laid down next to him, ready to comfort him because of the answer she had to give. “If you thought Lily was pretty…if,” she teased. “Then, no, I’m afraid you wouldn’t be able to.” She ran her fingers through his hair while he took a moment to silently accept her words.
James let out a deep sigh. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”
“But if you thought Lily was pretty and there eva’ comes a day when you can marry her, the way I hope it will, then I’d love nothin’ more than for you to use your grandmotha’s engagement ring to propose to her.”
“You would?” James smiled.
“I sure would. It’s a special ring. Just as special as you are to me … and just as special as I think Lily is to you,” she added. “You see, it’s the very same ring your grandpa used to propose to your grandma. Before your grandma passed away, she told me that she wanted me to give it to the first son I eva’ had, so he could propose to his future wife.”
“Then isn’t J.R. supposed to have it?”
“Yes, but I wanna give it to you, James. You’ve always been my miracle boy. You’re the very reason my heart still beats. I think I might’ve given up by now if it wasn’t for you.”
“Please don’t say that mama.”
“But we share our deepest secrets here, rememba’?”
“I know, but that makes me sad.”
“I know, but now because of you, I’d neva’ dare give up and leave you here alone, because you make me happier than anything in this whole world.”
James rolled over and hugged his mother tight.
“That’s why you’re so special to me,” Elizabeth continued after pulling back from her son’s loving embrace. “And it’s the reason why I wanna give you my motha’s ring to give to Lily. But, of course, that’s only if you thought she was pretty,” she teased. “Buuut since you don’t think she is, I guess we don’t have to worry about that, now do we?” she smiled.
James blushed again and gave another sheepish smile.
“Okay now, go on and lay down. You need your rest.” James laid back on his pillow while his mother adjusted his comforter. “Goodnight.” She kissed him on the forehead and proceeded to leave again.
“Mama?” James called out again.
“Yes, sweetheart?”
“Our secrets neva’ leave this room, right?”
“Neva’.”
“You promise?”
“Cross my heart,” Elizabeth
said, making the motions across her chest.
“Well, m-maybe I do think Lily’s pretty … j-just a little … m-maybe.”
Elizabeth smiled, having already known that from the start. “Well then, if the world makes it so you can marry Lily, then that ring would be just perfect for her. At the very least, it sure would make a beautiful gift … maybe,” she teased with a wink.
James smiled at his beloved mother. She smiled back, shut the door quietly behind herself, and left her son alone, feeling certain that he would drift off to sleep and dream of his beautiful Lily.
After twenty years of torturous abuse, Elizabeth knew how much it meant to have a true source of happiness in one’s life: a fact she had learned after James became the sunshine in her dark world. She now wanted nothing more than for her son to feel that sort of healing light radiating into his soul. Shortly after Lily came to the plantation, Elizabeth was convinced that this new little girl indeed had that sort of power. Every day she thanked God for bringing someone into her beloved son’s life who emitted the sort of sunshine that was melting away the storm clouds that were hovering over James’s head.
James was a naturally introverted child. But his mother’s mistreatment, along with the cruelty from his brothers, caused him to withdraw and sink even further inside of himself. Elizabeth felt guilty knowing that her state of sadness had weighed James down through the years. The joy Lily brought to him finally helped to ease the pain of that guilt. Within weeks of his escapism with Lily, Elizabeth noticed that her withdrawn, lonely, little boy was melting away into one who smiled and laughed and was eager to explore outdoor life … so long as Lily was by his side. It was her deep appreciation for that fact that Elizabeth never said a word on the many occasions she had seen Lily watching her piano teaching sessions instead of minding her duties. Elizabeth was so grateful for the positive changes Lily was extracting from James that she even began covering for him whenever he ran off to play with her on Sundays. Elizabeth was no fool. She had the hawk eyes and intuition of every mother. Anybody who half paid attention to James would know the reason for his Sunday disappearing act, but Elizabeth would lie and tell Jesse that James was off playing with neighbors down the road. She was doing all that she could to give her favorite child the time and freedom to continue playing with his best friend for as long as he wanted every Sunday. She wanted that just as badly for James as he did.
