Bluegrass Blush

by Carolyn Bond

  She sighed in relief. She wasn’t sure she would ever be able to tell him everything that happened. Hearing his words helped, though.

  “I will send in your aunt. She has been beside herself to speak to you.”

  He left and a tall, elegant woman glided into her room. She stood at the end of the bed and beamed.

  “Aunt Emory! I am so, so glad to see you’re alright,” she said.

  “Thank you, your ladyship, I know what you did for me and I hate it that you went through that, but I thank you.”

  Your ladyship?

  The phrase caught her and she froze. Her eyes widened. Aunt Emory, watching her closely, nodded and smiled.

  “Aunt Emory?” she tilted her head questioningly.

  The handsome woman perched on the bed beside her and caressed her hair back.

  “Yes, honey. It’s me.”

  “But how?”

  Her mother smiled. “I got the soap from this woman in France. She looked at me and said she knew just what I needed for you, Eveleigh. Her eyes looked through me like she was looking across the horizon. She handed me two bars of lavender soap and told me to use one first and I would understand.”

  “So you, you had already come here. You had been here?”

  “Yes. I really liked it here. It was fun getting to play reenactment for real. But then I met Malcolm and I knew he was yours, stuck here in this time without you. You both didn’t know how much you needed each other. So I went back and gave you the other bar. Remember what I said?”

  Everleigh thought a minute, “You said, no matter what the year, you’ll always be there for me.”

  “And here I am!”

  “Oh, Mom! I missed you so much!”

  “I’ve worried ever since I got back here. I didn’t know who you would be. I knew you would have a different body than your 2016 self, just like I did. Then I got kidnapped and wondered if I would ever see you. When I finally got back home, the butler told me my niece had come to see me from Charleston, I knew that had to be you. Apparently we have been caught up in the same person’s snare.”

  “Yeah, that Mr. Peeble. Good grief.”

  “He is in jail. He will be for a very long time. He may never get out. They are charging him with Cherise’s death and attempted murder for you, assault, extortion, along with various other charges like escaping from jail, stealing a carriage, and so on.”

  “Wow.”

  “And papers have been filed to annul your marriage since it wasn’t legal in the first place.”

  “Ugh.” A wave of shame and disgust filled her. She dropped her head back on her pillow and looked at the ceiling.

  “Baby, I know you went through with it because of the threat to me, actually to a woman you didn’t even know. I know your heart and you would do anything to protect another from harm. It’s the only thing that makes sense when you put all the pieces together.”

  She nodded, “If I’d known it was you,” she trailed off with her face crumpling into a grimace.

  “Oh! Oh, there, there, now. I am just fine.”

  Everleigh hugged her. Tears slipped free and streamed down onto her mother’s shoulder.

  Her mother continued, “I am worried about you though. You have been through too much.” She paused and gave her a pained smile, “Did he hurt you, honey?”

  Everleigh leaned back and took her mom’s hands. She didn’t want to make her sad. She didn’t want her mother to think of her in the context of what he did. She sighed and looked into her mother’s eyes. The one thing she did need was to get past the pain of it, though, and no one would be able to love her through it like her mother. Gratitude for the events that led them together here in this time melted her heart.

  “Yes. He did,” she admitted. She bit her lip and let that sit in the air adding nothing more.

  Her mother sat very still, not betraying any emotion that had to be running through her head. Everleigh saw her mother’s brows crease together slightly and her jaw clenched. Finally she took a deep breath.

  “Then we will get through it together. Your heart is my heart and we will heal through it in each other’s arms. When you are ready, I will listen and you will not be alone. Okay?”

  She nodded and cried. Sobs broke through and her mother held her and rubbed her back.

  “Cry it out, baby. He stole something from you that is precious. You did nothing wrong.”

  When she felt at peace, she wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and looked up.

  “Will you just look at you? What are you, like 20?” said her mother.

  Everleigh laughed, “Yeah! And with a rockin’ bod! Before this mess,” she gestured at her side, “I was having a blast. Oh! Hey! Malcolm proposed!”

  “Everleigh! Oh my goodness!” she said excitedly and then tilting her head down and looking up at her through her lashes, “Is he not a total hottie?” Then she fanned herself like she was swooning.

  “Mom!” They both laughed.

  “I knew you two were meant to be together.”

  There was a knock at the door and Everleigh called for them to come in. Suzanne and Malcolm came marching in with a tray that had a plate covered with a silver dome and little finial on top.

  “Food to make you heal quickly!” said Suzanne laying the tray on Everleigh’s lap.

  “We didn’t care for the selection being cooked in the kitchen so we walked over to a restaurant across the street.

  She pulled off the lid and the plate was piled high with crispy fried chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. The aroma wafted over her face and she breathed in the delicious steam. She looked around her and had everything she needed. Her mother, her good friend, and a man that was surely created just for her to love.

  Chapter Six

  The Infirmary would not release her for two more weeks. Finally, Everleigh was resting on the sofa of her Aunt Emory’s house, as far as the world knew. She had put away the corset until the stitches completely healed and wore a loose day dress. She was able to get around slowly. Her mother came in with a tray of tea and biscuits and set it on the table next to the red velvet sofa. She poured them a cup and handed Everleigh hers.

  “Everleigh, when you feel up to it, we need to call a seamstress to come and discuss your wedding gown.”

  “Oh! That will be fun. It’s awesome that gowns in this time are all tailor made. No bridal stores!”

  “And, they don’t have to be white. It could be any color or fabric you want.”

  “White is fine. I’m so glad you are here to see me get married!” She paused, “Do you ever wonder what happened to the real Everleigh or Aunt Emory?”

  “I have thought about it. I wonder if they actually died and we were placed in their body at that exact moment. With no antibiotics or safety codes, this is a dangerous time. Most people don’t live past sixty years old.”

  “I suppose. Maybe Everleigh died of what her parents had but she caught it later.”

  “The woman in France would think it was magic that brought us here, but I believe it was God. He can do anything! I do think the woman in France that gave me the soap saw all this unfold in her mind like a prophet.”

  A knock at the door paused their conversation and they sipped their tea waiting for the butler to come in.

  Everleigh thought about how nice it was to have domestic help. This was much better than in 2016 when they did everything themselves. Of course, having Mr. Addison’s fortune was helpful, too. She was now ridiculously rich and that stock in the telephone was just going to keep going up.

  The butler announced that Mr. Steel had arrived and they looked up. Everleigh’s heart wound into a thudding hammer as her gaze followed up from his shoes, up the cream trousers, the suit coat, and to his tan face with green eyes watching her take him in. A slight curl of his lips showed that he was enjoying being the object of her obvious affection.

  “Good day, ladies.”

  “Mr. Steel! How nice to see you. Sit and have some tea,” Emory sa
id.

  “Thank you. I will.” He sat next to Everleigh while Emory poured him a cup.

  He took Everleigh’s hand in his and kissed her knuckles. Her heart leapt. She wanted to caress his face but decided that was too much for a lady to do in this time period in the parlor in front of her mother.

  “So to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?” asked Emory who was watching the two of them ogle each other and smiled.

  “I was hoping to take Everleigh for a carriage ride if she feels up to it.” He glanced at her looking for a response.

  Everleigh’s face lit up and his followed suit.

  “I think you have your answer,” Emory said. “I’ll ring for Betsy to pack a luncheon basket to take with you.” She pulled the cord to call the maid and relayed the request.

  Soon Everleigh and Malcolm were bouncing gently in the back of his carriage down the dusty road lined with maple and oak trees on both sides. The shade of the leaves making a canopy to hide them as they traveled. The breeze was at least 10 degrees cooler in the shade than out in the open. Malcolm held her hand with one hand and had his arm around her with the other.

  “It beautiful,” she whispered. “The rolling green hills and blue sky. The rolls of harvested hay. It looks like a perfect landscape painting.”

  “Yes. I do like living here. Louisville is a beautiful city, but it is so peaceful here. Do you think you will like living here? After living in Charleston?”

  She turned to him and looked into his eyes, “Where ever you are is home to me, now or forever.”

  “That’s good,” he smiled a pleased curl of lips. “That is part of what I wanted to talk to you about. Remember I told you about the title issue with my estate?”

  “Yes. About the heir. But what about Percy?”

  “I am having my lawyer check on it. There are some issues because there is no record of Percy’s birth. No one even knows he existed. I’m not even sure if the government will recognize him as able to receive the estate due to his condition.”

  “Oh. Good grief.”

  “If we are not able to straighten it out, Percy and I, and the help, will have to leave the estate. In fact, everything on the estate including farm equipment will go back to the government.”

  “Oh no! Can’t I just buy it from them?”

  He sighed. “That is very kind of you, but no. I will not get by on your money. It’s yours. Even though leaving would be devastating on many levels because I have no assets. I sold everything to create a fund to take care of Percy. That is how I have Bethann. She is not just an ordinary nanny. She is educated and studied at an institute affiliated with a Dr. Downs in England.”

  Everleigh couldn’t help but smile.

  Dr. Downs. Whom the syndrome would be named after some 80 years from now.

  “But, darling, I can’t have you and Percy flung into the streets. My inheritance is more than adequate to help us resettle even if it has to be a different estate.

  He looked away and sighed. Turning back to her, “That is so kind of you but that is your security. I will not take it.”

  She grimaced. Frustration tore at her.

  He is so stubborn!

  She could fix it, but she could see how it would rob him of his need to provide for them.

  He continued, “If the lawyer can’t find a way to legally retain the estate and its assets, I will be in no position to marry you.” His face pulled back in a pained smile as he waited for her reaction.

  “But, but, what about Percy? What will happen to him if you lose everything?”

  He dropped his head in his hands defeated.

  “I will have to place him in an orphanage. I won’t be able to provide for him. Maybe in time I will be able to, but I am not sure if I will be able to get him back.” He pursed his lips, “Of course, Bethann won’t be able to wait that long. We may lose her services.”

  A fury welled up in her. This was so unfair. Not only to her and Malcolm, but it would be such a devastating blow to Percy. So many changes in his life and none for the better. She couldn’t bear to let this happen if she could help it.

  She thought about what she could do. She was pretty adept at interpreting statutes and civil rights laws from her work. She had read state and federal regs for sport just to brush up. She had handled workplace accommodations, handicap access in public places and even testified in Congress. She could find her way around complex issues.

  Of course she couldn’t explain any of this to Malcolm, but she was going to figure out how to resolve this. Surely, Percy’s Revolutionary War ancestor hadn’t intended to throw his fragile great, grandson out to an orphanage.

  She squeezed Malcolm’s arm, “I am certain this will work out. I haven’t the slightest worry.”

  The carriage slowed and Malcolm hopped down the steps. He turned to lift her out and gently set her on her feet. She looked around the scenery. Trees shaded a creek that quietly rushed over a flat stone ledge and fell to a lower stone creating a short water fall. The bank was a grassy slope the rolled up to a meadow. The driver of the carriage handed Malcolm the luncheon basket and a blanket and then hopped up to the driver’s seat. He tapped the reins and clucked his tongue and the carriage meandered around the grove of trees to give them some space.

  Malcolm spread the blanket on the grass and invited her to join him.

  “Are you hungry, beautiful lady?” His eyes narrowed and held hers.

  She giggled, “I believe a little refreshment might revive me.”

  Holding his hand to steady her, she slowly sat and then reclined on one elbow. He joined her with the basket by their heads. He reached in and pulled out a clay jug of tea and poured it into two cups. She sipped the lukewarm tea and smiled. Perspiration made the long white linen skirt of her dress stick to her legs.

  Tea. I’ve never drank so much tea in my life. What I wouldn’t give for a Coke! An ice cold Coke!

  She tried to remember when Coke was invented. She thought she had read in a flight magazine that it was sometime near 1890. Maybe it wouldn’t be long before it made its way to Versailles.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked.

  She smiled. There was no way she was going to tell what she was thinking.

  “I was just thinking of how thirsty I was.”

  “Ah! Yes, it is a warm day. The shade will cool you soon.”

  “Do you come here often?”

  “Sometimes. It’s a good place to think. It makes for a good run for the General.”

  She looked at the light filtering through the leaves highlighting his hair. She reached out and ran her fingers through the long brown waves. He closed his eyes at the pleasure of her touch. Taking her hand he kissed the inside of her palm. His warm breath felt like feathers on her skin.

  She breathed in and closed her eyes then. She could stay in this moment forever. She rolled back and stared up through the canopy of leaves. They gently swayed with the wind above them and rustled against each other with a ‘whishing’ sound.

  “Everleigh, I didn’t expect to fall in love. I tried so hard to steel myself from those emotions. But you seem to reach me in a way that I have no way to hide from. It’s overwhelming. Many times I have felt like we were connected in some way. “

  She turned her head to look in his eyes.

  “Do you think other people in love feel this way?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. I thought I was in love once, but now I see that it can’t compare. I think, Malcolm, that we have something very special. I think it’s something that is greater than the laws of the universe even.”

  He smiled. “So you feel it, too, the cord that connects us?”

  “Yes.” She looked at his pale pink lips and felt her body rush with heat.

  He knelt down and covered his mouth with hers. She wanted to be so close to him that she was a part of him. Not just physically, but if she could somehow slip into the space his soul occupied, she would.

  His tongue gently caressed her
lips until a surge of passion unleashed as he probed every part of her mouth. His tongue danced with hers as his right arm encircled her pulling her closer while his left arm cradled her head. Her hands explored his hard muscled chest and torso. He was a wall of solid warm muscle and she felt so safe in the cocoon of his embrace. She wanted to give all of herself to him and to know every part of him. She reached up and held his head on either side, weaving her fingers into his silky waves.

  With her eyes closed, she saw a dizzying kaleidoscope of color and explosion as the energy of his passion increased. He kissed down her cheek and behind her ear, suddenly stopping to inhale the scent of her skin. The cool draw of air against the humidity touching her neck made her moan out loud. In response, he plunged his mouth onto her neck and kissed and licked and gently bit her silky porcelain skin.

  She felt as though she would positively come undone.

  “Oh, Malcolm,” she groaned.

  Breathing hard, he paused with his face in the swoop of her hair. “My darling, I look forward to loving you thoroughly for the rest of our lives.”

  He rolled back onto the blanket and stared back at her. They lay side by side on their backs holding hands. She’d felt so safe in his embrace. Trusting him completely, she decided that the best way to heal from her scarred heart was to let Malcolm show her again and again how to love again.

  A thought came to her mind as she stared into his eyes.

  Percy cannot be hidden away.

  “Malcolm, I understand your fear that Percy would be taken from you. However, the eugenics supporters gain momentum from people’s ignorance. I truly believe that if ordinary people knew someone like Percy, knew how sweet he is, they would have a hard time believing he was less than human.”

  “Everleigh, I don’t know.”

  “I know. It’s scary. As you said, there is no law right now. So he is safe. They cannot take him away from you. The biggest obstacle I see is people’s fear of the unknown. If the people of this town knew him, they would protect him.”