Jack was the one who got a lump in his throat at those words, which seemed to come straight from her heart. Her hurting heart.
“Forgive my foolishness,” she said. “I can see that I’m probably not the best influence for your son. He’s a delightful boy, really he is.” Her voice quivered on that, and she pursed her lips before blinking and hurrying on. “You’re a good father and you know what’s best for him. Please assure him that he’s done nothing wrong. He’ll have plenty of friends at school.”
Jack felt as though someone was twisting a spur inside his chest. He had hurt her. Hurt her. “I only wanted to get things clear between us,” he explained. “I did it badly and I said things that were all wrong.”
“No, I think you said them all right.” She gave a little nod as though everything was decided and finished. “Don’t be untrue to yourself by taking anything back now. It’s okay.”
“Charmaine…”
At her name on his lips, she raised her gaze to his, her attention diverting briefly to his mouth and twisting that spur in his gut again. “It’s okay,” she said again. “I’m a grown woman, not a child. You don’t have to pacify me. This was good. I needed this.”
What had he done? He’d been so narrowly focused on keeping his defenses in place, he’d erected a wall around himself. And around Daniel.
“I’d better go paint now, before Darlene thinks I’ve abandoned her.”
Charmaine turned and hurried toward the barn, and Jack just watched her go, like a man watching his entire life go up in flames.
Darlene cast Charmaine a few inquisitive glances throughout the rest of the evening, but Charmaine kept her distress and wretched feelings to herself. While the women finished the windows on their schoolhouse and as night was descending, Jack found small trees and bushes to dig up, planted them in wooden buckets and galvanized tubs, watered them, and set them strategically around the little building.
“Frank Miller will be bringing out the cupola and the bell tomorrow night,” Charmaine told him as they finished. “After that goes on, we’re ready for Saturday.”
“I think we should have all the young children sitting on the wagon and the older ones walking alongside,” Darlene said.
“That won’t leave any kids to watch the parade,” Charmaine said in what she hoped was a cheerful tone.
Darlene chuckled. “You’re right about that, but they’ll have so much more fun being part of it.”
“Indeed,” Charmaine agreed. “I’ll let all of them know, and I’ll tell them it’s our secret.” She tucked her smock and gloves in a satchel. “I promised Daniel I’d play marbles with him before we leave. Give me a few minutes, please.”
She didn’t particularly care that she’d left Darlene and Jack to wait outside the barn. Apparently Jack had carried a lantern out to where the boy was practicing shooting marbles with his thumb, because he crouched in a circle of light.
He had obviously watched and knew how the game was played, and he was already better at hitting the target than she. But when she missed a dozen times they laughed together. When she finally got up, dust clung to the front of her skirt. She brushed it off best she could and shook the hem.
Daniel followed her to the wagon as she prepared to leave, and Darlene met her there. “Are we riding home with Miss Renlow, Pa?”
“We are, Dan,” he answered while helping Darlene up to the wagon seat. His gaze locked unerringly on Charmaine’s. “She’ll be alone after she drops off Mrs. Redman.”
“I’m perfectly all right,” Charmaine assured him. “I’ve done this a hundred times, you know. Why should a trip home from town be any different?”
“I owe it to your father.”
“No, you don’t.” She scrambled up to the seat unaided. “You don’t owe him anything. Me either for that matter.”
Darlene glanced between the two of them with a look of concern. “Charmaine, if the man wants to see you home safely, what’s the harm?”
“Mr. Easton knows it’s better not to do things one way one day and a different way the next, just because of what people will think. Like what my father would think. I’ve handled this team on my own for years. Why should I suddenly act as though I’m a wilting violet because a man wants to protect me?”
“Charmaine!” Darlene said aghast. “You’re being rude.”
“No,” Jack said, raising a hand to the woman in defense of Charmaine. “She’s being honest. I can appreciate that.”
“Thank you,” Charmaine said, taking up the reins.
“Thanks for the marbles, Miss Renlow!” Daniel called.
“You’re welcome, dear.”
“You said we kin come visit the other kittens, right?”
“You’re welcome any time your father wants to bring you.”
“’Kay!” He waved.
Without another look at the man or his son, she headed the team toward Copper Creek.
Saturday dawned sunny and warm, a perfect Colorado June morning, with fluffy clouds adorning the blue sky over the Rockies to the west.
Charmaine always wore one of her nicest dresses to Founders Day, and she saw no need to change that habit now. She dressed in her pale lime silk with ruffled hem and gathered bodice. The cream lace insert at the split in the skirt front had taken her hours and hours, and she’d done it all herself.
She wasn’t attempting to fool anyone by wearing a nice dress and having her hair curled and ribboned. She adored pretty dresses with layers of crinolines, and her gold heart locket was her favorite—a gift from Annie many years ago.
“I am going to have a good time today,” she told herself in the mirror, making sure she used no hint of that affected Southern accent. She pinched her cheeks for color. “I am going to see all my friends and enjoy the parade, and you know what? Maybe I’ll just treat myself to ice cream at Miss Marples’. Yes, I do believe I will.”
She laced and tied her favorite soft kid boots, then boxed up lily cookies, an iced white mountain cake and her special chocolate-filled walnut cake that had taken the entire previous afternoon to bake and layer.
Her mother had sliced ham and made sandwiches to share on the food tables. She took off her apron. “Do we have everything?”
“I believe so.”
“I’ve never seen a color look so lovely on you,” she told her daughter. “What an excellent choice. I do think you and your cousin have surpassed me with your skills.”
“Thank you, Mama.” Vera had taught Charmaine and Annie to sew when they were girls. “We’ve had a lot of practice.”
Mort had the wagon hitched and ready and helped carry food to the back. “Can’t wait to see the school’s float,” he said. “I’ll bet it’s something.”
The church had kept their float a secret that year, too, as had the Ladies Aid Society. The mercantile had entered a float, as well as Luke’s livery, the druggist, the hardware store and the newspaper. Last-minute entries were always welcomed, because there was an entry fee—so there was usually a farmer or two and a business that just pulled their buggy or rode their horses for the fun of it.
The contests were held while the morning was cool. Charmaine wandered among the crowd, observing games of chance, competitions of strength, footraces and even a frog-jumping contest.
In front of the bank, Eldon Sweetwater gave a speech on the history of Copper Creek, and Diana talked about the upcoming elections. Proud of her cousin’s wife, Charmaine listened and clapped.
Occasionally she found a friend to walk with or with whom to visit, and when she ran into Luke and Annie and their children, Annie insisted she join them for lunch.
Charmaine prepared a plate for Rebecca and one for herself, finding the blanket Luke had pointed out. The Harpers were seated not far away, Glenda’s mother and Wayne with them. Wayne waved a greeting and she nodded.
She had just seated herself beside Rebecca when Wayne joined her. “Charmaine, you look beautiful today.”
“Why, thank you.”
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br /> “Did you enter something in the cake contest?”
She glanced at him, but had difficulty meeting his eyes. “I did.”
“I saw your lily cookies on the dessert table. They’re always the fanciest thing there.”
She studied the tables and milling townspeople below. “So they are.” She hadn’t made them to impress anyone this time. “I made them because I enjoy it.”
“How fortunate for the rest of us.”
Luke and Annie arrived, Luke carrying Ruthie on one arm.
“Your hands were full, so I brought you a drink,” Annie told her. “Good afternoon, Wayne.”
“Ma’am.”
Noah and Kate joined them, Rose in tow, and the baby on Kate’s hip. She sat him down and let Noah go get their food.
Charmaine noticed that the conversation was stilted while Wayne was sitting with them. As soon as he excused himself and moved on, Luke and Noah launched into a conversation, and Kate asked Annie if she’d seen her mother-in-law anywhere.
“There’s Jack,” Kate said, gesturing to the man and his son walking toward the hillside with plates and drinks. She nudged her husband. “Invite him to join us.”
Chapter Ten
Noah got up and met Jack on the grassy slope. A moment later, father and son joined their gathering.
Jack noticed Charmaine and his step faltered for a moment. Kate unfolded another blanket and made more room.
“Hey, Miss Renlow,” Daniel said with a smile.
“Hello, Daniel. Have you enjoyed the day so far?”
“Oh, yes! I watched the frogs jump and then I got to hold James Bixby’s jumper. He said I kin come to the creek by his house and find a frog for my own self. Pa’s gonna take me later. You could come!”
His excitement was a pleasure to see. She gave him a fond smile.
“Miss Renlow is wearing too fine a dress to go frog hunting, Daniel,” his father said.
If they were friends, she would have told him she could go home and change first, but she held her tongue and glanced away.
The first person she saw was Wayne, seated with his family. He was studying the gathering in which Charmaine sat with a frown.
Diana and Burdy strolled by just then, and Will flopped down to sit beside Daniel.
Charmaine picked up her plate and the jar in which Annie had brought her lemonade. “I believe I’ll see what the contest table looks like now that all the cakes have arrived,” she said.
Annie looked at her oddly, but Charmaine gave her a smile and headed down the hill. After stowing her dishes, she found the cake table. She had a good chance, though Flora Sample had entered her Yankee ginger cake, so it would just depend on the personal likes and dislikes of the judges.
Charmaine studied her chocolate-filled walnut cake in the center of the table. Number twelve. It had always been so important to her to win a ribbon. So important that she be the best, that she do something perfectly.
At home, a drawer held a dozen blue ribbons she’d won over the years. Everyone knew she was one of the best bakers in the county.
But what had those ribbons earned her? she wondered. Admiration? Appreciation? Friends? Her friends would love her if her baked goods tasted like dirt. A husband? Obviously not.
Reaching across the cake-laden table, she plucked up the number twelve card and stashed it under the table. She then lifted the plate holding her cake and carried it quickly to the dessert table.
Charmaine located a knife and sliced her masterpiece into wedges. She tasted the frosting on one finger, inordinately pleased with herself, and placed the cake inconspicuously among the baked goods brought for lunch.
She picked up a tin plate and tried a sliver of an apple crumb cake. She took pride in her baking. She didn’t have to be the best, but after tasting a peach pie that puckered her cheeks, she suspected she was. She left the remainder on her plate.
Under the leafy canopy of a spreading maple tree behind the picnic area, Glenda and the mercantile owner’s wife were washing plates and jars in wooden tubs. Charmaine found an apron and joined them for half an hour, pleased to be useful.
She had just dried her hands and was removing her apron when she saw Kate and Darlene standing at the dessert table with their heads together. Kate tasted a slice of something on her plate and her eyebrows rose. They had discovered her walnut cake and were undoubtedly perplexed at how it had been served for lunch. Charmaine grinned and slipped into the crowd.
It wasn’t long until it was time to line up for the parade. Charmaine joined the parents who were getting their children ready. Diana and Burdy were there, and both thanked her profusely for the favor she’d done them in seeing to this project on their behalf. Diana pulled a small box from her skirt pocket and handed it to Charmaine.
“I don’t want a gift,” Charmaine told her. “You’re family, and I like to help.”
“That’s why you deserve this,” Diana said. “Take it or you’ll hurt my feelings.”
Charmaine accepted the box and opened it to find a silver pair of pearl-encrusted hair combs. “They’re lovely,” she said in surprise.
“They reminded me of you. They’ll be so pretty in your hair.”
Charmaine hugged her and tucked the gift into her pocket. “I do love them. I’m sure I’ll wear them often. Thank you.”
The parents had the arrangement of the floats handled, so Charmaine wasn’t needed. She was able to sneak her first looks at the competition, however, and decided theirs was still the best.
She found a spot on Main Street, where she’d be shaded by the overhang of the ice-cream parlor, and waited as others lined the street in anticipation.
Her parents found her, Uncle Eldon and Aunt Mildred accompanying them. Before long the rest of the family joined them, and the parade began.
The little schoolhouse, bell clanging and children waving, caused a stir in the crowd as horses drew the wagon forward. Will and Daniel, seated together on the side, waved as the wagon rolled by. Burdy, holding Margaret on his shoulders, ran out to give all the children a peppermint stick. He walked alongside for a while to get them all gifted, then came back, a broad smile on his face.
He slid his arm around Diana and she tucked up against him, her hand on Margaret’s back. Burdy turned to Charmaine then and grinned. “Thanks!”
She waved in return.
The parade moved on, and some of the crowd followed along, others went back to their booths and games. “Care to join us at our house for tea?” her aunt Mildred asked.
“Thank you,” she replied. “But I have something I want to do.”
Her parents and aunt and uncle moved on and Charmaine entered the ice-cream parlor. Miss Marples wasn’t present, Charmaine had seen her in the crowd at the picnic, but two girls of about sixteen were taking orders and serving. She took a seat and asked for a dish of peppermint ice cream.
It tasted as good as she remembered, with crushed peppermint sticks making each bite crunchy.
“I would love a cup of tea,” she told the young lady who came for her empty dish.
The tea was hot and tasted strong after that candy ice cream. She was enjoying her outing immensely when the bell over the door rang. She looked up to discover Wayne making his way toward her.
He paused behind the opposite chair. “May I join you?”
“Certainly.”
“Tea, please,” he told the waitress.
Charmaine observed as he added sugar and sipped. He’d never escorted her here. All of their outings had been to social events and church functions. There had been a time when she’d imagined it would be romantic to have a young man invite her here and to sit sipping tea together. Now she thought it odd that he actually preferred tea when all the men she knew drank coffee.
“Your float was exceptional,” he told her.
“Oh, it wasn’t mine. I only helped.”
“It was the hit of the day, nonetheless. There’s a blue ribbon hanging from the corner of the roof.”
The news was good. She smiled.
Wayne leaned forward. “Do you think we could speak somewhere alone?”
She glanced around. There weren’t any other customers except a small family at the table near the front window. “Isn’t this private enough?”
His cheeks darkened with color, and he glanced at their surroundings, then back at her.
“I can’t imagine what we have to say that’s too personal for here,” she added.
“Well.” He adjusted the string tie at his throat and simultaneously raised his chin in a nervous gesture. He rested both hands on the table. “I’ve been thinking,” he said, “that I’ve become entirely too comfortable with things the way they are.”
She folded her hands and listened, unable to guess what he was getting to.
“What I mean to say is that, well, we’ve been attending functions together for quite some time now.”
“Four years,” she supplied.
“Truly? I hadn’t realized. In that time I don’t believe I’ve strictly been courting-minded. It’s no reflection on you, Charmaine. You’re lovely, and I enjoy your company.”
Hadn’t been courting-minded? “I don’t understand. You’ve been calling on me. I thought we were…a couple.”
“We were. I mean we are. I want us to be. I’m doing this all wrong.” He reached across the table and took her hands. “What I’m trying to say is that I think it’s time to make a commitment. To each other.”
She blinked in surprise. “Oh!”
He squeezed her fingers gently. “I’m asking you to marry me.”
Chapter Eleven
“Oh!” She almost snatched her fingers from Wayne’s, but caught herself. Her head swam for a moment, and when it cleared she focused on him. With his fair hair and blue eyes, he was classically handsome. She’d always imagined they made a striking couple. She’d anticipated the day that he would propose marriage to her.
Charmaine had even rehearsed her reaction and her answer in front of her mirror. She would blush prettily, fan herself with her hankie or her gloves and press her hand against her bosom as though she were speechless with joy.
Wed Under Western Skies Page 18
