LOVE in a Small Town

by Janet Eaves

  “Better?”

  “Maybe, Daniel.” She touched his hand on the window frame. “You have a wonderful Christmas, okay?”

  “Yes ma’am. You have one too!” Daniel looked the other direction. “Right, Dad?”

  “Absolutely,” Martin said softly. He looked awfully serious for someone who was celebrating Christmas. Likely he was still angry with her about hiring Daniel. “We’d be glad to give you a ride home if you like, Miz Shelby. Don’t want Legend’s newest citizen getting frostbite.”

  “I’ll be fine, but thank you.” She tried to catch his gaze but he didn’t cooperate. “Merry Christmas, Martin.”

  “And to you, Miz Shelby. And to you.” He drove off slowly, as Daniel rolled up his window.

  A little while later Midnight unlocked the front door of the Emporium and took off her boots to leave them to dry. It had been a very unusual Christmas Eve, but beautiful nonetheless. The only thing that made it less than perfectly peaceful was the rift she had accidentally created with Martin. But hadn’t Betsy had assured her that Martin would come around if he were approached correctly?

  Christmas Day Midnight got up late, made coffee and sat on her little back deck bundled in a sweatsuit and flannel robe. The town was blanketed in sparkling white snow. There were sounds of kids having snowball fights, car doors closing and people greeting each other happily, as Christmas Day visiting occurred. But Midnight stayed home all day. It was her first Christmas to spend physically alone, but she had spent some Christmases with Jeff during which she had been emotionally alone. This year was better in so many ways. She phoned her parents, and her sister, to catch up on their news and share progress of her store. She fixed scrambled eggs and toast for brunch, napped, and finished the day on her loveseat next to a big bowl of popcorn, reading a Christmas romance novel. Unusual holiday, but nice. Her soul was so much more at peace now than before she had come to Legend, or in her early days here. If Legend’s slow pace, wonderful people, and beautiful scenery could do that for her, it could do it for others, too.

  The following day her plans began to take shape. And then there was the matter of enlisting the aid of Martin McClain.

  ****

  Several mornings later, Martin opened the front door of The Emporium and was amazed. The old bar had been cleaned and polished so that the beautiful grain of the burled walnut shone. Tall, elegant stemmed glass mugs proclaiming “The Emporium” in forest green letters were hanging from the brass hooks above, waiting for customers. A cappuccino machine and other black-and-stainless gadgetry gleamed on the wall cabinet. Coffee beans were roasting, with an aroma so rich his mouth nearly watered. The walls were the same deep green as the lettering on the mugs, and the hardwood floor had a shiny new coat of polyurethane. The huge room was an eclectic variety of displays: jewelry, clothing, wooden toys, hand-carved walking sticks, dulcimers, glass dust catchers of various sorts. Some of the wares he recognized as having been made by one or another of his cousins. A lot of his family members were into the old time crafts. He also saw a display of books and wondered about those. And about the Native American art that filled a walnut-and-glass case along one wall. Large, low-slung leather club chairs were interspersed with the displays, as if inviting one to sit and visit, or read. At the far end of the room was a small stage with a striking floral arrangement placed in front of the classy walnut and brass lectern.

  The place was inviting, yet professional. It was as nice as any ritzy store in Knoxville and much classier than anything he’d seen in Gatlinburg. It made him want to stop and browse. And this was saying something, because Martin McClain was not a shopper. It took a moment for him to get his bearings and remember why he’d come here.

  Then Midnight appeared. That was the only way to phrase it. Maybe she’d been standing there the whole time, maybe she’d just stepped out of the stairwell. But she made absolutely no sound. She was just there. And looking very, very good.

  Her black hair hung straight down her back. She wore a little more makeup than usual, maybe, causing him to be drawn into the depths of those incredible black eyes. Her milky white skin was translucent. Not that he could see much of it. She was wearing a black business suit that looked as if it had been made for her, or on her, and black leather stilettos with dangerous-looking pointy toes. The large diamond studs in her ears and the diamond-and-emerald ring on her left forefinger winked at him. She was sex, beauty, and professionalism all at the same time.

  Martin wondered again what this amazing woman was doing in his little hometown, why she so much trouble, and what he could possibly do to induce her to stay.

  He felt himself staring.

  “Good morning, Miz Shelby.” Look at the wall. At the blown-glass black bear. Anything but her.

  “Martin.”

  “Got your voice mail. You wanted to see me about something?”

  “Yes. I asked you here to talk about our future.”

  Chapter Eight

  “Our future? Our future? What do you mean by that?”

  “Just what I said. Our future. Yours and mine. And Legend’s. I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and I want to share some ideas with you. That’s why I left the message on your machine at the office last night. So you’d hear it first thing this morning, and come over before we open for the day. I have a feeling that we don’t have time to waste.”

  She was talking crazy. Martin wondered if he needed to be concerned about another attack by a long pearl-tipped straight pin, with or without accompanying voodoo doll. But he liked listening to her twangy New York accent, and watching her beautiful mouth move, even when she wasn’t exactly making sense. She was wearing a dark purplish-red lipstick that made her lips look even more delectable than usual. He would’ve said that was impossible before seeing it today. He took a deep breath, deciding he’d just let her talk.

  “Go on,” he said, moving over to one of the high stools by the bar. “I assume there’s coffee in it for me at least?”

  “Of course. I just roasted some new beans.” She walked over behind the bar and spent a few minutes dealing with the beans, grinder, and then putting the grounds in to brew with some water she poured out of a large glass jug bearing a fancy label. Imported water, he’d guess. Nothing plain about this woman, not even the water she used to make coffee. Amazing.

  “About the other day….” they both began. Then chuckled.

  “Ladies first.”

  “All right.” She took a deep breath, blew it out. “The other day. I should have talked to you first, before contacting Daniel about the websites. I knew better. But I was excited about the prospects and wanted to give him a chance at it. And in just a few minutes of conversation with him, I’d forgotten I should have spoken to you first. I apologize.”

  He could see what the apology cost her and appreciated it.

  “One thing about that. How did you contact him?”

  “Well, that’s easy. He stops in nearly every day after school. Didn’t you know?”

  No, he didn’t know. Had no clue. Why did it hurt him to hear this? Martin took a moment to digest the information and his own reaction to it. “He comes here and does what?”

  “Helps me. He’s helped clean and polish, haul whatever I need to have hauled. His cousin Joey and their friend Tyler have been so much help. But mostly Daniel. He never misses a day. This makes me feel awkward, Martin. I thought you knew that. I thought he’d told you.”

  “He comes to the office after school, but I’m sometimes out, and when I’m there I’m often distracted. Geez. You probably think I’m one of those dads that don’t care.”

  She smiled. “I think nothing of the sort. He’s thirteen, and maybe a bit headstrong. I imagine he knew you would balk at his spending the time here.” She shook her head. “Anyway, one day when Daniel was helping me with the polyurethane….”

  “You got him to polyurethane your floor?”

  “He helped me do it. We read the instructions and did it together. Why?”


  “Nothing.” Martin could barely get his son to do basic chores around the house. Willingly painting a floor? No way.

  “So we were working on that. And maybe Joey was here too…yes, that was it, and they were talking computers and websites, and Daniel said he’d done yours, and that got me thinking about what a great tool the site is for you, and I got the idea of a group of sites for the stores here and linking them…and I just got caught up in the concept. I mentioned it to Betsy next time I saw her, and she said talk to you. I apologize. Daniel and I got carried away with the possibilities.”

  “I see you’re easily caught up in the excitement of ‘marketing Legend,’ as you said the other day. I saw it then and it’s flashing in your eyes now. I can believe you’d have forgotten to talk to me. Of course Daniel should have mentioned it to me.”

  Midnight looked into Martin’s eyes. “Maybe he was afraid you’d say no.”

  “Probably would have.”

  “Why?” she asked, handing him a steaming cup of coffee.

  Columbian. Black. Without asking, she knew that’s how he’d want it.

  Martin made a point of looking carefully at the mug. “Your coffee mugs are nice. Elegant. You like things elegant, don’t you, Miz Shelby?”

  “Elegant? Yes. I like nice things. And I want my customers—my guests—to feel I’ve made an effort to make them comfortable. As if it’s a treat to come in here, so they’ll want to come back.”

  He looked around the large room with its eye-catching displays. People were going to feel that way about it, he’d wager. He did, and that surprised him.

  “This is a real fancy place. It looks like it belongs in the city. Not like it fits in Legend. This is just not the way we do things here.”

  “Oh, Martin, please don’t say that. That attitude can kill anything! I’ve seen it happen in retail loads of times. Management decides it can’t change the way it always sets up a display, or the way marketing is always done, and the customer loses interest and goes somewhere else.”

  She lowered her voice, and with her hands flat on the gleaming bar top, leaned a little toward him. Her black eyes flashed. “That could happen to Legend. If our local people don’t care enough about it to make it the best it can be…to capitalize on what makes Legend unique….” she gestured at the local crafts surrounding them. “Some other small town will take advantage of the niche market and bring in the people. And the business. And the money. And Legend will just fade away and die.”

  It had an ominous ring of truth to it. “Assuming you’re right, why would it matter to you?”

  “Legend is my home now. I want to live and work here and make lasting friendships. Friendships that matter.”

  “It’s not just about the money?”

  She laughed, but the laughter didn’t reach her eyes. “You must be kidding! If I was interested in maximizing my income potential, this is not where I’d be living. You know I was in New York City most of my adult life and traveling the rest of it?”

  “Yeah. I think that was mentioned to me somewhere along the way. So why come here?”

  “A lot of reasons. Quite honestly, some of them are none of your business. But the main reason is I wanted to have a home and friends. And have meaningful work again. I miss that.”

  The fact that she hadn’t said she’d had a home and friends before wasn’t lost on Martin. She’d had meaningful work, but not a home and friends? How did anyone live like that?

  “Basically just a fresh start?”

  “Yes. Small Town America is something I’d never experienced as an adult. I lived in and traveled to big cities. Of course, I saw all kinds of places with my family when I was a kid.”

  “Where’s your family now?” He hoped he wasn’t getting too personal, but realized he really wanted to know.

  “My parents move a lot. They’re both artists, so they can live anywhere. Dad does Native American arts and crafts.” She gestured to the walnut and glass case. “And Mom writes poetry. It’s in her Irish soul. I have the collection of her poetry books here. Talk about a niche market! But she actually sells some of them; mostly online with their website, sometimes at readings. They don’t make loads of money on any of it, but they’re incredibly happy. And they managed to raise my sister and me without too many major incidents. Money isn’t everything. I do know that, in case you’re wondering.”

  That stung. He had been thinking of her as a spoiled rich woman, come to the little burg to impress everyone and then move on. What purpose there’d be in that, he didn’t know. Now he was starting to believe what she said. She wanted a home. If her parents had moved a lot when she was a kid, and then she didn’t feel at home in the city, that made sense. He wondered if there’d been a husband or boyfriend, or a series of them, in the city, and whether that was part of what drove her away. He didn’t know her well enough to get into that discussion. Not yet. But he definitely wanted to know. He wanted to know everything about Midnight Shelby. That realization surprised and scared him. It felt like the beginning of a relationship, and he wasn’t sure he was ready for that. Assumed, too, that she wouldn’t be interested in a hick like him. Maybe as a fellow business owner, but nothing personal, surely? Yet there was something….

  “Martin, what is it that bothers you about attracting new business and new people to Legend? Surely you knew your website would help speed that along.”

  “My son created the website without my knowledge, when he was twelve years old. I made him take it offline for a little while, and then Betsy and Chloe, some of the others got on my case, and I gave in. It does help business, of course. I’ve had a few sales come my way, and several other potentials, because of it.”

  “Me, for instance.”

  “Yeah. For instance.” Without the website, Midnight Shelby would never have landed in Legend. Martin put that thought into the back of his mind, to ruminate later. Maybe Daniel’s allowance was due for an increase.

  “Again, what are you afraid of?”

  Her persistence impressed and frustrated him.

  “Not afraid, exactly. Wary. I’m wary of outsiders. I’m still getting used to Lilly Hood, who’s just been here a few months. Even though she married Coach Hood and seems a pleasant enough type, something about her just makes me wonder. I don’t entirely trust you, if you want the truth.” He drained the last of his coffee, set the cup down and slid it toward her. “My reasons are my own, but the gist is, anyone who comes to Legend is going to have to prove himself—or herself—to me. This town, the whole county, is my home. McClains have lived here for generations. There’ve been McClain mayors, county councilmen, commissioners. Even a state senator a couple decades ago. I feel duty-bound to protect what’s here.”

  “As if it’s your inheritance?”

  “And my son’s. Yeah, I guess so.”

  “Realistically, Martin, what will be here for Daniel when he grows up? What kind of living could he make here? What quality of life will there be? You’ve lost some industry in recent years, I’ve been told. The empty factory outside town is an eyesore. Several of the shop owners are struggling now.” Her graceful hand gestured toward Main Street outside her front windows. “Unless something turns around, the struggle will get worse, and they won’t be able to hold on. We need to get things moving for Legend…for us, for Daniel, and for whoever comes after us.”

  It sounded so noble when she put it that way. “So you’re devising this Marketing Legend campaign. And you need Daniel….”

  “I don’t have to use Daniel. I want to give him the opportunity. He’s incredibly bright, Martin, and he needs to be challenged so he continues to grow and learn. But if you don’t want Daniel to participate, I’ll tell him we’re going to use someone else. I’ll come up with a plausible reason.”

  “Well, either way, you sure don’t need me for this plan of yours.”

  She adjusted some coffee mugs that already hung in perfect symmetry. “We want you to be part of it. You’re important to the com
munity, you know its history and its strengths that some of the rest of us might not think of. Give it some thought, okay? That’s all I’m asking right now.”

  ****

  A few minutes later, Martin walked briskly back to his office. There was still a little snow on the ground, and the air was frigid. He felt warm inside, though—savoring the aftertaste of delicious coffee, and his recollection of Midnight Shelby’s beautiful lips and incredible black eyes. He’d give her idea some thought, but doubted he’d participate in any campaign to bring in a bunch of newcomers. It was just asking for trouble.

  That’s how Daniel’s mother had come into his life: a pretty young woman who’d gotten an office job at a factory outside town and moved to Legend because of it. She and Martin had had an instant and intense physical attraction. It had lasted through three months of dating and several months of marriage. But when Daniel was tiny, the factory shut down and the pretty young woman had left town. Left behind were an empty shell of a factory, a lot of unemployed people, and a broken-hearted Martin McClain with a child to raise.

  But he’d healed. And he’d made sure Daniel wasn’t messed up because he didn’t have a mother. Both the corporation and the woman had been out for their own interests, and had had no qualms about taking what they could get from Legend and its people. Martin didn’t wish either of them back.

  He couldn’t let that happen again. Not to his town, and not to his son.

  Chapter Nine

  Christmas lights. On the way to school this morning, Daniel had asked Martin for permission to help Miz Shelby with Christmas lights in the afternoon. Martin didn’t hesitate to say yes; since learning Daniel was helping Midnight, he’d paid better attention. Daniel always had a better outlook, not quite so teenage-sulky, when he’d been at The Emporium after school. Martin had stopped in a couple of times, and found Daniel doing such unlikely work as using a dust mop on the hardwood floors in the showroom, and learning to squeegee the large front windows. He’d seen the look of respect and adoration on Daniel’s face when Midnight instructed him on a task, or even corrected him in something he’d done not quite right. Midnight seemed to have endless patience with Daniel and was interested in teaching him, encouraging him. It looked as if Daniel had found himself a surrogate mom.