by Sharon Sala
She picked everything up and went back inside. Melvin Lee followed her, taking care to close the door behind him.
Within moments, he heard his granny’s voice and then the sound of her footsteps hurrying up the hall. Granny was an older version of Mama, but happier and way more fun.
“There’s my sweet boy!” Minna said. She swept him up into her arms and gave him a big kiss.
Melvin Lee was grinning so big it made his lips stretch.
“Hi, Granny! Are you gonna stay for supper? Will you sit by me?”
Minna Atkins leaned over until she was face-to-face with him and cupped his face.
“I’m staying for supper, and for a long, long time, Melvin Lee. I moved into Sissy’s room, and she’s gonna sleep in your mama’s room with her.”
Melvin Lee gasped. “You are?”
Minna nodded, then lowered her voice. “I’m so sorry about what happened, honey. I didn’t know, or I would have been here a long time ago. I’m going to be your mama’s helper from now on. You just get to be Melvin Lee Wilson, whoever he turns out to be.”
Melvin Lee’s eyes welled, and he threw his arms around her neck.
Minna picked him up in her arms again, but this time she carried him to the sofa and sat down with him clutched against her chest, his face buried against her neck. He wasn’t crying out loud, but he was shaking, and after the call she’d gotten from her daughter, she knew the decision she’d made to leave her retirement community was the right one.
Junie had been listening. She was still horrified and humiliated that the police chief not only gave her a stern talking-to, but a veiled threat as well. The worst thing she could have imagined was losing her children, and the last thing she wanted was to get Social Services involved in her life.
It had been hard to call her mama to ask for help, but it was even harder to call her husband, Danny, and tell him Melvin Lee had run away and why.
Danny’s stunned silence soon went from shock to anger. He was already upset that Junie was pregnant again, when she was supposed to be on reliable birth control. But to find out it was Melvin Lee’s absences and not his intellect that caused him to have to repeat first grade broke his heart.
Junie knew Danny was mad at her, and disappointed in her as well. But she’d made this mess, and it was up to her to fix it.
She sighed. Sissy was playing in her playpen, but Junie needed to check on the boys. Anytime they got quiet was a time for concern, so she went down the hall to see what they were doing, leaving Minna and Melvin Lee on their own.
* * *
Supper was over, and Melvin Lee had already had a bath and was in his pajamas getting ready for bed. He had school tomorrow and didn’t want to be late.
Granny promised she’d come and tuck him in and read him a story, so he was going through the books on his shelf, trying to decide what he wanted her to read, when he heard the phone ring. A few moments later, his mother came into his room carrying her phone.
“Daddy’s on the phone. He wants to talk to you.”
Melvin Lee beamed and reached for the phone.
“Hi, Daddy! Granny’s here. She’s gonna read me a story before I go to bed.”
“That’s great. Are you okay now?” Danny asked. “Mama told me you ran away.”
Melvin Lee sighed. “Yes, but I won’t have to do that no more. Chief Pittman said so.”
Danny Wilson was horrified that the chief of police had to be the one to take care of his son’s troubles. It should have been him. He should have been home.
“Mama told me. I just want you to know I’m so sorry. I didn’t know, son. I didn’t know, but it won’t ever happen again, okay?”
“Okay, Daddy. Are you coming home soon?”
“Yes, and when I get home this time, it will be to stay.”
Melvin Lee gasped. “Forever and ever?”
“Yes, forever and ever. Now you tell Granny I said hi, and sleep tight tonight. I’ll be home by the weekend. I love you, Melvin Lee. You are such a good boy. I am so proud of you.”
“I love you, too, Daddy. See you soon,” he said, and then handed the phone back to his mother.
Junie was crying as she turned around and passed her mother who was on the way to read Melvin Lee’s story.
Minna didn’t have much sympathy for her daughter, so the tears didn’t move her. Instead, her focus was on her grandson.
“Hey, honey, did you pick out a story?” she asked.
“Curious George! George is funny, Granny.”
Minna took the book.
“A great choice! You lay yourself down now, and I’ll tuck you in. Then you can listen to the story, okay?”
Melvin Lee scooted beneath the covers, sighing as his granny covered him up and brushed the hair away from his forehead. He shivered from the sheer joy of feeling safe and knowing someone was finally going to take care of Mama and the kids besides him.
He watched his granny open the book, then waited for her wink. She always winked before she started a story. As she began to read, he got lost in the story.
Minna read all the way to the end, even though Melvin Lee had already fallen asleep. He’d had such a big day. Such a hard day. She laid the book aside and leaned over and brushed a soft kiss on his forehead.
“Night, night, my little man. Granny loves you forever,” she whispered, and then turned out the light, leaving a small Thomas the Tank Engine night-light burning beside his bed.
* * *
Cathy had her nightgown on and was getting ready for bed when her cell phone rang. She glanced at caller ID and smiled as she answered.
“Hello.”
“Hey, it’s me,” Duke said. “I hope I’m not calling too late.”
“No, not at all,” she said.
“So, I’m making sure you’re okay. You got soaked today. You didn’t reinjure your ankle, did you?”
“I’m fine. The only thing that’s a mess is my hair. Naturally curly hair sort of explodes in damp weather.”
He chuckled. “Your hair is kind of amazing…like you.”
Cathy’s heart skipped a beat. “Why, thank you, Duke Talbot. That’s one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me.”
“I have my moments,” Duke said. “I just wanted you to know that we’ll be really busy out here tomorrow. We have to work cattle, and it will likely be a long, muddy day, but if it’s okay, I’ll call you again tomorrow evening.”
“It will be something to look forward to,” she said.
“Crown Grocers has a delivery service. I checked. It’s something new that was added after the Piggly Wiggly went out. All you have to do is call in your order, and they’ll deliver it right to your door.”
“I didn’t know that!” Cathy said. “I will definitely call in an order tomorrow, but as soon as my ankle gets a little better, I’ve decided to lease a car. That will end my lack of mobility, too.”
“I’m not sure they have cars to lease in Blessings,” he said.
“No, they don’t. I’ll do that in Savannah. Don’t worry about me. I know my way around all that.”
“Okay, but if you need a ride to Savannah, or anything like that, just call.”
“I’ve got it covered,” Cathy said. “Hope all goes well for you guys tomorrow, and be careful working cattle.”
“Thanks,” Duke said. “Talk to you soon.”
Cathy heard him disconnect and then put her phone back on the charger and turned out the lights. But instead of going off to sleep, she lay there in the dark thinking about her life.
When she’d first left Las Vegas on that bus, she’d had no goal in mind except escaping her ex-husband’s reach. And she’d been wandering aimlessly until she’d found Blessings. She’d chosen it because it was so far away from where she’d come, and because nobody knew her here, she’d felt n
o threats.
But now that she was making friends here, she’d discovered another facet of Blessings she hadn’t expected. It was beginning to feel like it could be home, and Duke Talbot’s abrupt arrival in her life was another plus. Even though they’d just met and he was intriguing, she was guarding her heart as closely as she was guarding her location.
Chapter 7
The passing days in Blessings were changing for a lot of people.
Melvin Lee’s enforced life of babysitting was over, and he’d made peace with repeating first grade after his daddy came home. Danny Wilson still hadn’t settled on what kind of job he was going to look for, but it would be a local one and that’s all that mattered.
Minna Atkins settled into her room and the routine of the Wilson family’s life better than she had imagined, and Junie was elated to have her husband home for good, but considered her morning sickness as due punishment from the universe for all of her misdeeds.
Duke and Jack’s cattle loss was entered into the farm account as a very expensive loss, and Hope found out she was pregnant. It wasn’t exactly planned, but she wasn’t unhappy about it, and Jack was over the moon.
After Duke congratulated them properly, he had to face the fact that the day had finally come when a separate residence was becoming a reality for either them or him. That evening as they were all cleaning up the supper dishes, Duke made an announcement.
“In light of the upcoming blessed event, I’m calling a family meeting.”
Jack hung up the dish towel he’d been using, and Hope put the last of the leftovers into the refrigerator, and then they all gathered back around the kitchen table they’d just cleared off.
“So what’s up?” Jack asked, and reached for Hope’s hand.
Hope saw a look on Duke’s face that she’d never seen before, and it scared her.
“Is something wrong, honey?”
Duke smiled. “No, no, nothing like that. In fact, everything is right, even perfect, and I have a proposition to make that has to do with our growing family. I’ve been thinking about this for a couple of years now and just let time get away from me without talking to you two about it. I think it’s time that I found a place of my own.”
Hope gasped, and Jack was so stunned he couldn’t speak.
“Oh, don’t take it like that,” Duke said. “For God’s sake, it should have happened years ago when you two first got married. Hope, bless her heart, didn’t just move in with one man. She moved in with two, and frankly, honey, I don’t know how you stood me.”
Hope’s eyes welled. “I always knew that the farm and you were part of the deal and considered myself fortunate. I don’t want to be the reason it’s breaking up.”
Duke clapped Jack on the back to punctuate his sincerity.
“You guys are missing the point. We’re not breaking up. We’re growing! I’m thinking that big library we hardly ever use and the old room Mom called the sewing room would make an awesome master bedroom and nursery.”
“But that leaves the whole upstairs for you,” Jack said.
“No. You’re missing the point,” Duke said. “This is a special time for the both of you, and you deserve the freedom to be yourselves and share this time together, without wondering if I’m going to come walking in the house. Those bedrooms will fill up in the years to come.”
“What are you planning for yourself?” Jack said. “There are a lot of great places on the farm to build. We don’t want to lose you, Duke.”
“You’re not losing me. I’ll be here every day just like I am now, and we’ll still work the farm together, and life will go on. I’m not sure about building a house, though. I’ve been thinking about Mr. Bailey’s place. I don’t know if it’s for sale, but I’m going to check it out. It already has a house on it, and the land backs up to ours. It would be a good addition to our farm, and all that extra land would be an opportunity to build up the herd.”
“That house is old,” Jack said.
Duke grinned. “No, it has character, and that’s what I like about it.”
“You have been thinking about it, haven’t you?” Jack said.
Duke nodded. “Yes, and long before baby Talbot was on the way.”
Hope sighed. “Okay. I can accept that reasoning, but only if you promise you still call this place home. If you don’t feel free to come and go as you’ve always done, you’re going to hurt my feelings.”
“And mine,” Jack said.
“It’s all good, guys. I just wanted you to know now, so you can start renovations to the downstairs and be done long before the baby arrives.”
“Fine, but we’re not messing with anything inside the house until after the holidays,” Hope said. “I have plans, and they include all of us and our guests, including Cathy Terry, remember?”
“I’m not forgetting anything,” Duke said. “Look at it this way. After I’m gone, you two have the run of the house. Hell, you can run naked anytime you want to.”
Hope rolled her eyes. “I’m about to lose the running-naked body and turn myself into a big fat baby incubator.”
Duke grinned. “I know I’m notorious for always saying the wrong thing, but right now I got nothin’.”
It made both Jack and Hope laugh, and when bedtime finally rolled around, the shock of the news had worn off, and Duke was thinking about calling Rhonda Bailey the next morning to see if her dad’s place was for sale.
Phone calls between Duke and Cathy continued through the next few days along with a couple of quick trips to her house. Once to bring her fresh eggs again, and once to bring her flowers, because Duke liked to watch the dimple come and go when she smiled.
* * *
Finally, the swelling in Cathy’s ankle was gone. It was still a little tender if she was on it too much, but it felt good to have her feet back under her again, and she rolled the walker back to Phillips Pharmacy on her own.
LilyAnn saw her coming and held the door open for her as she entered.
“Out shopping?” she asked.
“Yes, but I’m also returning this,” Cathy said.
“You know it’s paid up for the month, right?” LilyAnn asked.
“Yes, but I really don’t need it anymore and someone else might.”
“Okay, I’ll register it as having been returned. You should have seen Duke Talbot when he first came to rent it for you. He was such a sweetheart. So concerned for your welfare and that you were so hurt and lived alone.”
“Really?” Cathy said.
“Oh yes! He went back into the storage room with Mr. Phillips to try them all out, and then I thought it was so sweet when he also thought of the ice packs and the painkillers for you. You can tell he’s used to taking care of people, can’t you? I mean…he stayed on the farm and made sure Jack got to finish college after their parents died. He had to step up and take charge, and I think that is what kept him from ever marrying. He just wouldn’t take the time away from responsibilities to devote to building a relationship.”
Cathy nodded to indicate she was still listening as she picked up a basket and began going down an aisle to get some shampoo. And all the while, LilyAnn followed her, still talking.
It wasn’t lost on her that the day of her accident, a total stranger had been more considerate of her than her own husband had ever been, and it was already a given that he was good-looking. And he was calling her every morning, and then again every evening before she went to bed. It was an amazing feeling to know that someone alive on this earth actually cared what happened to her.
Hearing LilyAnn bragging on him, too, was reassuring in a whole other way. Cathy had to keep reminding herself that everybody in Blessings knew everybody, and they knew all about the residents’ character and honesty. She was the outsider. But instead of distrusting her, like she’d been inclined to distrust all of them, they’d made her feel welco
me—inviting her into the inner circle of Blessings. To be accepted in this way was a gift, and she wasn’t taking it lightly.
Finally, she finished her shopping and went up front to pay. LilyAnn was still chatting when Cathy finally had to cut her off.
“I guess I’d better get back home. I have a roast in the oven,” she said.
“Umm, sounds so good,” LilyAnn said. “My husband, Mike, loves pot roast and veggies. Oh…by the way, have you made plans for Thanksgiving?”
Cathy nodded. “Duke invited me out to the farm to spend it with his family.”
“Oh really?” LilyAnn said, and then grinned. “So, any chance that fall you took might turn into another kind of fall…as in falling for one of our eligible bachelors?”
“You are so jumping the gun,” Cathy said, and laughed. “He’s just a friend who’s been super-nice to me. I think he felt sorry for me because I don’t have any family.”
LilyAnn shook her head. “Nope. Duke has never been much of a social person. I think he’s a little fascinated by you, and that’s a first.”
Cathy didn’t comment because she didn’t know what to say, but she liked the validity of knowing her invitation wasn’t just an afterthought.
“Like I said, I need to get home and check on the roast. Have a nice day,” Cathy said.
“You too,” LilyAnn said, and then waved as Cathy left.
Cathy took a shortcut home through an alley and could smell the roast as she walked up the steps onto her porch. She hurried inside to check it.
“Another five minutes and you’re coming out,” she said as she put the lid back on it and took her purchases from the pharmacy to her room, then went back into the kitchen to finish up the meal.
The roast was out and resting when her timer for the potatoes went off. She took them off the burner and was draining the water so she could mash them when her cell phone rang. She set the pan aside and went to answer, happy when she saw it was Duke.
“Hi, you,” she said, unaware of the big smile she’d put on Duke’s face.
“Hello to you, too. You sound like you’re in a good mood.”
