by Irene Brand
Marie had never been so surprised in her life. Earl stood in the hallway, with Awinta by his side. Both of them looked somewhat uneasy, probably wondering what kind of reception they would get. Vance had been in his office, but he hurried into the hallway.
Earl looked as if he wasn’t sure of his welcome, but he said, “Mother, Dad, I want you to meet my friend, Awinta.”
Instead of having on her native garments, Awinta was dressed in a dark red coat, which Marie thought was probably a recent purchase. Her long black hair hung over her shoulders, and golden earrings graced her earlobes. She was so beautiful that tears formed in Marie’s eyes.
Evelyn made the first move toward them, but Vance wasn’t far behind. They both threw their arms around their hermit son, and then Evelyn pulled Awinta into the circle.
“Oh, son,” Vance said, “I’m so glad to see you. And is this young lady your wife?”
Tears were glistening in Earl’s eyes. “Not yet! We came to get permission from you and Mother.”
Trying to frown, but smiling instead, Vance said, “And what will you do if we refuse permission?”
“She won’t marry me if you won’t give your permission,” Earl admitted. “That’s why we’re here.”
After Aunt Fannie gave Earl a strong hug, she turned to Awinta and held her at arms’ length. “Now, you be good to my boy,” she admonished.
“I intend to,” Awinta said, smiling. “I love him very much.”
The family moved into the parlor and spent the next hour catching up and talking over the wedding plans.
A knock sounded at the door, and Aunt Fannie hustled down the hallway once again.
They heard a masculine voice, and Aunt Fannie answered, “Yes, sir, come right in. Missy Evelyn and Marie are in the parlor. This way, please.”
Marie’s heartbeat quickened. The voice sounded like Daniel’s, but could it be? Evelyn stood and went to the parlor door.
“Company, missus,” Aunt Fannie said.
“I hope I’m not intruding, Mrs. Bolden,” the masculine voice said. Marie gasped, wondering why Daniel was in Canaan. She’d know that voice anywhere.
“I’m Daniel Watson, Lena Turner’s grandson. I came to Canaan yesterday to take care of some business, and my grandmother suggested that it might be convenient for me to bring Marie back to Cade’s Cove when I return home tomorrow.”
“Come in, Mr. Watson,” Evelyn said. “That was thoughtful of your grandmother.”
Evelyn led Daniel into the parlor and introduced him first to Vance. Daniel shook Vance’s hand, and when Evelyn turned to introduce him to Earl and Awinta, he said, “We met in Cades Cove, Mrs. Bolden.” Addressing the family at large he added, “I didn’t mean to intrude on your family time. I should be going.”
Evelyn said, “Nonsense. Please join us,” and indicated an empty chair beside Marie.
Marie had stood when Daniel entered the room, and now she sat down. She’d heard what Daniel said in the hall, and while everyone talked around her, her mind was on the next day. She both anticipated and dreaded taking the long drive between Canaan and Cades Cove with only Daniel for company. However, the physical and emotional attractions between them were strong enough that she felt they had to deal with the situation. Too many things separated her and Daniel, and perhaps the long drive would be a good time to discuss the difficulties of a relationship between them.
She turned to Daniel and said, “Earlier today we were saying that Dad probably shouldn’t go out tomorrow. He’s had a bad cough for a few days, and we don’t think he’s in any physical condition to take the round-trip between Canaan and Cades Cove. Jasper, who works for Dad, was planning to drive me to the Cove, but it will save him a trip if I go with you. What time do you plan to leave?”
“Will midmorning be convenient for you?”
“Yes, of course.”
Aunt Fannie entered the room with a tray.
“Here’s coffee, tea and cookies, missus. Anything else you need?”
“No, thank you, Fannie. I’ll serve our guests. Will you be staying for dinner, Mr. Watson?”
“No, thank you. I’m visiting at the home of my cousin, who lives here in Canaan. I’ll be eating there.”
Marie’s pulse accelerated as she listened to them talk, and she was glad that her mother took the initiative in visiting with Daniel while Vance talked with Earl and Awinta. Marie seemed to be tongue-tied, and when she did make a comment, it didn’t amount to much.
When he finished drinking a cup of coffee, Daniel stood up. “I still have some items to purchase here in Canaan, so I’ll be leaving.” Turning to Marie, he said, “Shall I meet you here tomorrow morning at ten o’clock?”
“That’s convenient for me. And I’m sure Aunt Fannie will have a big basket of food for us to take.”
Daniel took his leave of the rest of the family and departed. Marie walked him to the front porch and watched as he mounted his horse and rode down the street.
* * *
Later in the evening while Vance continued to visit with Earl and Awinta in the parlor and Aunt Fannie took her keen ears down the hallway to the kitchen, Evelyn said, “I’m impressed with Daniel. He seems like a fine man, but you don’t seem to be sure about him.”
Marie went to sit beside her mother, and Evelyn put a comforting arm around her. “Well, yes and no,” Marie said honestly.
“I’ll listen if you want to talk about it.”
“I’ve wanted to talk to you for weeks. I sensed an immediate emotional and physical attraction to Daniel the first time we met, and it hasn’t gone away. And from the dazed expression on his face at our first meeting, I believe he experienced the same feelings that I did. He hasn’t made any strong overtures, and I don’t see him often, but he’s in my mind so much of the time that it upsets me.”
She reached inside her pocket for the pearls he’d recently given her. “He gave these to me before I left the Cove, and I didn’t open the gift until Christmas morning. I want to keep them, but I don’t suppose you’d approve. I’ve always thought that falling in love would be a wonderful experience, so why am I so miserable?”
Smiling, Evelyn said, “True love often has its ups and downs. I speak from experience, as you know. I won’t tell you what to do. I have no doubt that you’ll make the right decision.”
“I love him,” Marie said. “However, I don’t want you to worry, for I won’t let my feelings overcome my common sense. Daniel isn’t the kind of man I’d want to marry, at least I don’t think so right now, so I’m not planning to follow my heart. His grandmother knows how I feel, and we’ve prayed often about a solution to the situation, but we haven’t gotten an answer about what is best for both of us. Fortunately, I’m so busy with my school teaching that I don’t see him often.”
“You know that since you reached the age of twenty I haven’t meddled in your life, or Earl’s, either,” Evelyn said. “I figured that if your father and I hadn’t taught you right from wrong by that time, it was too late to start. But I will ask this—what’s wrong with Daniel Watson that would make him objectionable as your friend, and even more than that, if my eyes don’t deceive me?”
“Well, for one thing, he isn’t a believer, and you taught Earl and me from our early teens that we shouldn’t be ‘yoked’ together with nonbelievers.”
Nodding, Evelyn said, “And I still believe that is the right way, but I know of a few mixed marriages, where the nonbeliever does accept our Christian faith. Is there any hope that Daniel could be converted to our beliefs and way of life?”
“None that I’ve detected. Besides, if I should marry now, there aren’t many school trustees who will hire a married woman as their schoolteacher, and I’d want to continue teaching even if I did marry. I’ve heard the saying ‘a woman’s place is in the home’ so many times that I feel
like screaming when someone mentions it in my presence. I just don’t see why a married woman can’t have a career just like a married man.”
Laughing, Evelyn put her arm around Marie’s waist and kissed her on the cheek. “I encountered the same biases years ago when I became a missionary. I understand what you’re experiencing.”
“I figure Dad twisted a lot of arms, or I wouldn’t have been hired to teach in Cades Cove in the first place. So do I follow my heart or my teaching profession?”
Evelyn shook her head. “I don’t have an answer for you, my dear, but if it’s God’s will that Daniel Watson is the man for you, He will provide a way.”
Sighing deeply, Marie stood, saying, “I must get ready so I won’t keep Daniel waiting in the morning.”
She stopped at the foot of the stairs and said, “Life will always have blessings and disappointments, I suppose. Which reminds me, I’m so glad you and Father are coming to Earl’s wedding.”
“We’ll be there if I have to drag your father, though I don’t think I’ll have to. I’ve prayed that Earl would finally settle down, and I think Awinta is a good match for him. I wouldn’t miss being there to wish them well. I wish he would come to Canaan to be married, though, because I know Aunt Fannie would like to attend the wedding and it would be so beautiful here.”
“I know. But all of Awinta’s family is there. It would be harder for all of them to come here than for you to go there.”
“I didn’t think of it that way, but of course you’re right.”
“I was afraid Papa would be unhappy to have a native girl for his daughter-in-law, but he seems to be quite taken with Awinta.”
“He does seem to like her very much, doesn’t he? A few years ago, he would have been upset, but time has mellowed him. We’ve made several good Cherokee friends over the years, so he’ll accept Awinta into the family.”
That night, Marie’s dreams were troubled by far-fetched visions of Daniel clinging to a tree that overlooked a large precipice. Another dream showed a preacher marrying a couple, but the bride and groom had their backs to her, surrounded by a wisp of fog. Was that Earl and his bride? It looked more like Daniel and her. She was awakened by a rapid heartbeat, wondering why she was so troubled. She couldn’t go back to sleep, so she slipped out of bed and prepared to return to Cades Cove.
* * *
Daniel was at the door at the time he’d indicated he would call for her. Vance left his room to give her a hug before she left, although he omitted the kiss on the cheek that he usually gave her because he didn’t want her to catch his ailment.
Obviously concerned over Marie’s unease, Evelyn whispered in her ear, “God can make all things right. I’ll be praying.”
“Please do. I want to make the right decision for everyone concerned.”
Daniel and Vance discussed the weather, noting that there were a few clouds in the sky. “I hope you don’t run into any showers before you get home,” Vance said.
“I have a cover for the buggy if that happens,” Daniel said, and motioning to the boxes behind the seat, he added, “I have a tarpaulin with me, if I have to cover them.”
“Is there room for this basket?” Evelyn queried. “Aunt Fanny and I packed some sandwiches and fruit for you.”
Laughing, Daniel said, “I can always make room for food.” He took Marie’s arm and helped her into the buggy, then stored the lunch under the seat.
“Don’t forget to write,” Evelyn said, as Daniel picked up the reins, lightly touched the pinto’s haunches and they headed out of town. He handled the horse carefully and expertly, and Marie wondered if there was anything he couldn’t do.
They were quiet for the first mile or two, and Marie racked her brain to think of a subject that wouldn’t plunge them into an argument. She observed the small stream they were following and the scattered white clouds.
“This is turning out to be a beautiful day,” she said.
He agreed and they continued to talk about mundane things, until Daniel finally said, “Well, are we going to ride all the way to Cades Cove without discussing the important things?”
“Such as?”
“This overwhelming attraction between us! And don’t tell me you don’t feel it, too. I’m as aware of you as if I’ve known you all of my life. Something happened to me the first day I saw you—a feeling I’d never had before. I’d heard of love at first sight, but I didn’t believe there was such a thing. I do now. How about you?”
Marie supposed she could pretend she didn’t know what he was talking about, but instead, she said, “Yes, I’m aware of it, but I don’t believe we should even bother to discuss the situation. I can’t see any future for us. It would have been better if we’d never met. Our lifestyles are too different.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t believe everything I hear,” Marie said, not looking at him, “and I don’t invite gossip, but if your private life is like I’ve heard, we don’t have much in common. For one thing, my parents have tried to guide my choices in life, and one of the main things I’ve known as long as I can remember is that we shouldn’t be unequally yoked together in the spiritual sense. In other words, I shouldn’t marry anyone who doesn’t share my spiritual beliefs.”
“My lifestyle is probably not as bad as you’ve heard,” Daniel said, and his brilliant eyes glistened ominously. “I don’t care what people think. If someone tells a lie about me, I figure it can’t hurt as long as it isn’t the truth. So I just go my merry way.”
“That’s your privilege, but not the kind of example I’d want my children to see every day. And I do mind when people say false things about me.”
“Why?”
“For one thing, any gossip about me is a reflection on my parents, indicating they didn’t train me as they should have. Also, it upsets me when my reputation is tarnished without cause. There’s a Scripture verse from the writings of Timothy that I repeat often. ‘Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.’”
“Don’t spout Scripture at me. I get enough of that from Granny.”
The more they talked, the angrier Marie became, and she knew by the terse, scornful expression on Daniel’s face that he was angry, too. Fortunately, she could see the rooftops of Canaan in the distance, and she was relieved they didn’t have much farther to go. She was tempted to get out of the buggy and walk the rest of the way, but she thought of Lena and she kept silent. However, when he stopped the horses in front of his grandmother’s house, she jumped out of the buggy without his assistance. She didn’t want Daniel to touch her.
“I apologize for ‘preaching’ to you,” Marie said. “The Bible is so much a part of my life that it’s natural for me to talk in terms of biblical ideals. I didn’t realize I would offend you. I was happy to receive this appointment to Cades Cove because I’ve dreamed of being a teacher since I was a child, and I’ve received a lot of support from the trustees, but if you and I are going to quarrel back and forth for the rest of the year, I may have made a mistake.”
Mad at herself because she’d overreacted to Daniel’s comments, she snatched her suitcase from the back of the buggy and ran into the house. The house seemed empty and she went into her room, dropped her suitcase on the floor and lay on the bed. She half expected Daniel to follow her, but when she heard the horses speeding away, she realized that it was impossible for them to be friends, and certainly not more than friends. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and decided to have a good cry. She was still lying on the bed when she heard Lena’s buggy arrive, and a short time later, she heard Lena come into the kitchen. When Lena knocked on Marie’s door an hour later and said that supper was ready, Marie said, “I’m not hungry.”
Daniel was the pride of Lena’s life, and although she
knew Daniel’s faults, he was her beloved grandson. But as angry as she was at Daniel, Marie knew she couldn’t hide her feelings from his grandmother.
Without an invitation, Lena opened the door and came into the room and sat on the side of the bed. “Well, it’s obvious that you and Daniel have had a fight. He nearly forced me off the road with his reckless driving, and you look as if you’ve been crying because you’ve lost your last friend. If you want me to mind my own business, tell me so and I’ll leave you alone.”
Wanting nothing more than to leave Cades Cove, Marie was determined that she wouldn’t criticize Daniel to his grandmother. “He’s no more at fault than I am. Not that he’s ever asked me to marry him, but if he should, and even if my parents approved, I wouldn’t consider marrying a man who doesn’t share my spiritual beliefs and practices. Daniel doesn’t, and he made it plain that he doesn’t intend to change. I think it will be better if I find another place to live.”
Sighing, Lena said, “You and Daniel are a lot alike, and I’m not the one to advise you, but why not stay on here? You and I are friends now, and Daniel can come visit me while you’re at the schoolhouse. I’ll admit that I’ve been hoping you would become my granddaughter, but I doubt that will ever happen. However, both of you are angry now, and I’d advise you not to make any hasty decisions about moving away from my home for a few days. You won’t find many places in the Cove where you’d want to live.”
“I don’t want to leave you,” Marie said, “and my mother wouldn’t approve of it, either. I can’t avoid seeing Daniel the rest of the year, so I’ll make an effort to watch my temper. I’ve never had such a nasty temper before, but I’ve never been in love with anyone else, either. Pray for me that I’ll be able to finish the rest of the year without making a lot of mistakes.”
Chapter 7
Marie had been told when she moved to the Cove that sometimes the weather was so inclement during midwinter that school would often be dismissed for several days—days that had to be made up at the end of the school term. She was pleased when the weather was moderate enough that school had to be dismissed for only two days. Although she was busy all the time, Marie missed her parents. When she had only Saturdays and Sundays free, Marie didn’t feel that it was good to make a lot of trips to Canaan. She didn’t know what she would have done without the weekly letters she sent and exchanged with her mother.
