by Jolene Faye
Chapter Two
"Jed, look," Sybil whispered as she scrambled the eggs and poured them into the hot skillet. His soft hum and the creak of the rocking chair as he turned distracted the young girl sending her landing flat on her bottom. As he opened his mouth to ask what he was supposed to be looking at, the child raised her hands again, wrapping her small fingers into the plush quilt and pulled herself standing on her chubby wobbling legs. "Oh my goodness," he exclaimed softly as he stood and slowly made his way to the side of Sybil's bed, "she's so strong!" Lifting her into his arms, the happiness seemed to play amongst the wrinkles of his old face. As he settled back down into the rocking chair, the child cooed and reached for the soggy canned pear Jed teased in front of her. Sybil laughed and shook her head. Rose was getting strong and was so healthy, something Sybil had feared would never happen the day she found little Rose near frozen in that old burrow. The last nine months the child had grown so much. Robert and the sheriff had searched the woods and neighboring towns looking for the young girl's parents with no luck. When the sheriff had suggested sending the child to an orphanage last month, Robert had made a strong case over why she should stay with Sybil. Of course it had made sense that if the child's parents were to return and look for her the girl should stay in the area, but more than that Robert had seen the effect the child had on the woman he truly loved. Since the child's arrival, through the sickness of the cold and the plight to find the child's parents, Jed never left the farm and Robert had come to visit nearly every day. The relationship between the men had softened and they grew closer than Sybil had ever seen them before. The sense of loneliness and longing she felt after Robert married Jane had also been replaced by the love she felt growing for the young child. It wasn't the idea she'd always had before, but for once since her father's death, Sybil felt like she had a family of her own.
Sybil rocked slowly in the old chair, the warm breeze lifting the ends of the material from her lap as she sewed, quietly watching the young girl crawl over the lazy body of the old bird dog. "There," she said proudly shaking the material in her hands holding it up toward the dog and child. "What do you think Rose," Sybil laughed as the baby crawled toward her and pulled up on the denim leg of Sybil's pants. The child's short trusses of coal black hair framed the innocent delight in her sparkling emerald green eyes as she reached her tiny fingers toward Sybil. Lifting the girl into her lap, Sybil kissed her forehead softly and spread the thin quilt top over the girl's legs. The child laughed and giggled fanning the material in front of her while Sybil traced the stitching around the smaller blanket she'd sewn into the middle of the quilt. Taking the baby's fingers in her hand, Sybil smoothed the child's touch over the small embroidered rose in the middle of the slightly browned cloth. Laying her cheek against the little girls soft dark trusses of black hair, Sybil smiled, "Someone loved you so much Rose. This flower took a long time to sew. You were so tiny and frail when I found you wrapped in this," her words trailed off as she watched Jed and Robert appear from inside the barn. "I love you baby Rose," she whispered and pressed a kiss into the softness of the child's hair. As the men stepped up onto the porch, Sybil passed Rose to Jed as she stood and gave him her seat in the rocking chair. Smiling softly as Robert draped his arm over her shoulder, Sybil watched the light of happiness shine in the old man's face. Realizing she had leaned against Robert and slipped her arm around his waist, Sybil cleared her throat softly, "I guess I better fix you two men something to eat." Laughing softly as she walked back into the cabin, Sybil's eyes lowered to watch her feet. Her thoughts and her dreams lately turned not only to the happiness and love she had for baby Rose, but also to the unsettling warmth that had been growing between her and Robert once again. Before she had grown to love Rose so much, Sybil had spoken to Robert about the possibility of him and Jane adopting the girl. She knew well from Jed's story a few months earlier that Jane didn't want children of her own and how bad it had affected Robert when he found out. As thankful now as she was that Jane had turned her nose up at the idea of caring for the abandoned child, Sybil often thought how good a father Robert would be to Rose. Her mind returned to images of herself, Robert and Rose loving and growing as a family. Sybil smiled feeling the warmth of his arm still tingling against her shoulders. Shaking her head softly as she carved into the ham she'd cooked for supper, Sybil sighed. "He's married though Bird," she mumbled the reminder to the old bird dog as she dropped a thin sliver of ham to the happily waiting animal at her feet. Shaking the thoughts from her head, Sybil returned back to the chore of preparing supper.
Sybil stood over the crib Jed and Robert had built for Rose, a soft smile playing on her lips as Jed kissed the child and bid her goodnight. Though the day she found Rose seemed so familiar, Sybil couldn't think of a time she hadn't seen and felt the true happiness that surrounded her small makeshift family. Even the weariness that Jed once wore so heavily had seemed to have disappeared as the young child grew. Pulling the quilt up over the small sleeping child, Sybil sighed softly, "Good night my little Texas Rose." Making her way out onto the porch with her cup of coffee, Sybil startled to find Robert still sitting in the old rocking chair. "Oh," she laughed trying to shake the tension that gripped her shoulders, "I thought you left a long time ago." The fading light of the sunset played over the soft smile on Robert's face as he stood and stepped toward Sybil. Tracing her eyes over the soft brown waves of his combed hair, she smiled softly feeling his hands fall on her shoulders. The same boyishness she had seen in his father's eyes so many times before played in the cool blue pools of Robert's eyes as he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. "I have something for you," he spoke softly, squeezing lightly against her shoulders before letting his hands drop. Trying to steady her breathing and swallowing hard against the lump in her throat, Sybil watched the soft play of the muscles of his back tighten the shirt as he walked toward his saddled horse. The memories of those muscles under the softness of her hands raising a warming flush over her skin, Sybil folded her hands together wringing her fingers slowly against the thoughts playing in her mind. Sybil slowed the gentle wringing of her hands as Robert stepped back on the porch and held a folded piece of paper toward her. "I had a talk with Judge Hawthorne yesterday," he smiled softly as she took the paper and unfolded it, reading slowly. "Oh my Lord," she whispered still scanning her soft brown eyes over the letter, "Robert, is this for real?" Stepping toward her once again wrapping the softness of his palms over her shoulders, Robert smiled and nodded slowly. "If no parental claims of the child are made by Christmas, the one year standard wait will have been concluded and you can file to adopt Rose yourself," his voice low and soft as the tears began to fall over the length of her lashes. She had grown to love the little girl as her own and now that the possibility of it actually being true settled on her, Sybil trembled with happiness. Looking up at him, the happiness of the warm tears streaked down her cheeks and the sob caught in the back of her throat as he pressed his lips to hers. Slipping his hands down her shoulders and wrapping them around her waist, Robert pulled her body against his as his breath feathered between their lips. With the joy of the news and the sweetness of his breath on her lips, Sybil melted into the warmth of his arms for a moment. She had often longed to be in his arms again, dreamed of them raising Rose as husband and wife. Husband, the word shattered her heart as she realized he was already someone else's husband. Pressing her hands into his chest and pushing him away, Sybil stepped away, holding tight to the letter. "What are you doing," she sobbed as he tried to pull her back to him. Watching the happiness on her face transform into confusion and hurt, Robert lowered his head and stepped back. Pain twisted the soft features of his face. He had always loved her, but he had made his decision two years ago. "Sybil," his voice low as he backed down the steps, stepping into the stirrup of his horse's saddle and swinging his leg over, Robert raised the sadness of his blue eyes to her, "I'm sorry."