Mountain Homecoming

by Sandra Robbins

  “Then I suppose you should make your own choice.” He exhaled and shook his head. “Rani, are you going to tell me what’s bothering you, or are you going to keep me guessing?”

  A tear rolled down her cheek. “Everybody seems to think I should marry George, and I don’t love him. He’s a good friend, but I can’t stand to think about living the rest of my life with somebody I don’t love.” She swiveled in her seat and stared at her father. “I want a man that I love so much that we look at each other like you and Mama do.”

  He lowered his foot to the floor of the buggy and met her gaze. “And you don’t look at George that way?”

  She shook her head so hard her hair whipped against her cheeks. “No.”

  Her father reached over, covered her hand with his, and sighed. “Oh, darling, it’s so hard for me to think about you being old enough to talk about getting married. But I have to face the fact you’re growing up.” He cleared his throat. “But if my opinion means anything, I don’t think you should marry George. You’re young, Rani. You don’t have to marry the first man who comes along. God is going to send you someone that He’s picked out especially for you. Be patient and wait for him to find you.”

  She blinked back more tears. “Then you’re not disappointed.”

  He threw back his head and laughed. “Disappointed? I’m thrilled. I’ve never thought George was the right man for you.” He reached over and chucked her under the chin. “Besides, I’m not ready to lose my baby girl to another man. And I doubt if I ever will be. You can be an old maid for all I care.”

  Rani laughed and threw her arms around her father. “Oh, Poppa, I love you so much.”

  “I love you too.” His voice choked on the last words. He released her and snapped the reins across the horse’s back. “Now, we’d better be heading home. Your mama will wonder where we are. But first I’d like to stop by Matthew’s place.”

  “Why?”

  “I want to see how much needs to be done to get the cabin in shape. Cecil said he’d organize a group to come one day when the men are caught up in the fields. If Cecil can get a crew to join John and me, we ought to get Matthew’s cabin rebuilt soon.”

  “I’m sure Matthew will appreciate that.”

  On the other hand, she didn’t know how she felt about Matthew being able to stay in his cabin. That would mean he wouldn’t be at their house as much, and that troubled her. She sat up straight and gritted her teeth. Stop it, Rani Martin. You don’t need to be thinking about a man you’ve just met.

  Even as the thought drifted through her mind, she knew it was impossible. She couldn’t get the image of him tipping his hat to her out of her mind.

  Late that afternoon Simon walked from the barn toward the house. His talk with Rani earlier had occupied his thoughts most of the day. Although he wasn’t ready for his little girl to grow up, he knew he couldn’t keep it from happening. Sometimes he could hardly believe that she and Stephen weren’t racing around the cabin like they had when they were children. No doubt about it, he missed those days.

  As he approached the house, he spotted Anna sitting under the tree in the back yard. She had her back to him, and he crept up behind her. When he stood behind her chair, he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

  She jumped and swiveled in her seat to look up at him. “Simon! I didn’t realize it was you! Why, I almost cut my finger.”

  He walked around to face her and glanced down at the pan of June apples in her lap. The skin of one dangled between her finger and the blade of her knife. He chuckled. “Maybe I could find something to bandage your cut like you did mine the first day we met.”

  She laughed and shook her head. “You still haven’t forgotten that, have you?”

  He dropped to the ground and crossed his legs. “I haven’t forgotten a thing about the most important day of my life.”

  She held out a piece of apple. “Here. Eat this. I know your sweet talk is just a way of getting me to give you one of my apples.”

  He accepted the offered bite and popped it into his mouth. “Thank you, Mrs. Martin, for taking such good care of your husband.”

  She laughed again, then settled back in her chair and picked up another apple. “I didn’t get a chance earlier to ask you how Pearl and Cecil are doing.”

  “They’re fine. Cecil is going to help Matthew with his cabin.”

  “That’s good.”

  “Rani was upset when we left, though.” He pulled a piece of grass from the ground and stuck it in the corner of his mouth.

  Anna paused in cutting the apple and looked up. Concern shadowed her face. “Did something happen?”

  He rubbed the back of his neck and wrinkled his forehead. “I guess she and Pearl were talking about Josie, and the conversation turned to Rani and George getting married.”

  Anna scooted to the edge of her seat and arched her eyebrows. “And?”

  “It upset Rani. We talked about it on the ride home. She’s concerned because she thinks everybody is trying to push her to marry George, and she doesn’t want to.”

  “I suppose everybody in the Cove knows that George has been calling on her for months. Anybody can look at him and tell he’s in love with her. Did she say why she didn’t want to marry him?”

  “Because she doesn’t love him.”

  Anna propped her hands on her hips and frowned. “Well, I haven’t seen any other young men coming around here. What did you tell her?”

  “You know how I feel about this, Anna. I told Rani I didn’t think she should marry George.”

  Anna set the pan of apples on the ground and started to rise. “You know I don’t agree with you about George. Rani has loved him since they were children.”

  Simon grabbed her arm and pulled her back down into her chair. “Listen to what you’re saying, Anna. It reminds me of a girl who grew up with a friend on the next farm. Paul Sparks was his name, I believe. Paul and all her family thought she should marry him, but she didn’t want that. Do you remember why?”

  Anna smiled sheepishly. “Because I didn’t love him like a woman needs to love the man she marries. I loved him like a brother.”

  “Exactly. And that’s why we have to leave Rani alone to make her own choice.”

  She clamped her lips together for a moment before she exhaled. “But George is so special to me because…”

  “Because he was the first baby you helped deliver. But that’s no reason for Rani to marry him.” Simon arched an eyebrow as he looked at his wife. “Promise me you won’t interfere in this.”

  She frowned and crossed her arms. “All right. I won’t. But you make me sound like a terrible mother. You know I only want what’s best for her.”

  “I know.”

  “Did she mention any other man she might be interested in?”

  “No. I think she just wants to be left alone to make her own choice.” He stood up and pulled Anna to her feet. He wrapped his arms around her and drew her close. “She did say something that touched me, though.”

  “What?”

  “She said she wants a man she loves so much that they look at each other the way you and I look at each other.”

  “Oh, Simon, how sweet,” she said. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his face close to hers. “And I hope she finds someone she enjoys kissing as much as I like kissing you.”

  He covered her lips with his. He didn’t know what he had done to deserve Anna, but he’d thanked the Lord every day for the last twenty years for sending her to the Cove. She’d worked by his side to minister to the people in this valley. In time she had earned their love and respect, but with him it was different. She’d taken over his heart the day she climbed out of her uncle’s buggy.

  Chapter 6

  Since her visit to the Davis cabin yesterday, Rani had tried to keep busy so she wouldn’t dwell on Matthew’s absence. But when she’d gotten out of bed this morning her first thought had been that it was Saturday. Matthew was expected back today. Now with supper
over and the setting sun barely visible on the horizon, she had begun to doubt he’d arrive after all.

  She finished putting the last of the supper dishes away and walked out to the front porch. Scout, who’d lain beside the chair most of the day, jumped up the minute she stepped out the door and ran to her. She knelt down and patted his head. He whined and looked down the road, then back at her.

  It was as if he was telling her he wanted Matthew to return too. She shook her head and wrapped her arms around his furry body. “Sometimes I think you’re almost human,” she said. “I’ve never seen you take a liking to anybody like you have to Matthew.”

  She rose and sank down in the chair where Matthew had sat the night they had talked about George. Scout settled beside her, and she dangled her hand down to rub his head. He looked up at her, and she smiled. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s keeping him.”

  Even though she’d tried to tell herself he could have been detained for any number of reasons, it was no use. He’d only been in their home a short time, but everyone, including Scout, had felt his absence. And the fact that she missed him surprised her more than anything.

  The front door opened, and her father stuck his head out. “Rani, I’m back from the barn. We’re going to cut the cake.”

  She glanced down the road once more and sighed before she stood up. “Coming.”

  As she started in the front door, Scout jumped to his feet and began to yelp. She whirled, and her heart leaped at the sight of a horse galloping toward their house, Matthew crouched over the saddle. She walked to the edge of the porch and watched him rein to a stop in the yard.

  “Mama, Poppa, Matthew’s back!” she called out.

  Scout dashed down the steps and stopped beside the horse. His bark grew louder, and his tail wagged back and forth in a frantic rhythm. Matthew swung out of the saddle, dropped down beside Scout, and grabbed his wriggling body. He threw back his head and laughed in an attempt to shield his face from the dog’s licking tongue.

  “It looks like somebody’s glad to see me,” he said. He stood up, and Scout ran back up the steps and barked at Rani as if he wanted her to welcome Matthew.

  “Hush, Scout,” she said. The dog quieted and lay down at her feet.

  She started to speak just as the front door burst open and her parents rushed out. Matthew’s gaze swept all of them, but it lingered for a moment on her before he turned his attention back to Anna and Simon. He smiled as he stared up at them. “Did you think I wasn’t going to come?”

  Simon hopped down the steps and slapped him on the back. “We’d just about given up on you.”

  “I got back to my place this afternoon, but I had a lot of supplies to unload. It’s a good thing my barn isn’t as dilapidated as the cabin. I put everything in there and took care of the mules and cow I brought back with me. It took longer than I thought.”

  “It’s about time you was a-gittin’ here,” Granny called from the front door. “You’re just in time for a piece of the cake Anna baked for my birthday.”

  Matthew chuckled and nodded. “Then I’m glad I got here when I did. I’ll take care of my horse and be right back.”

  “We’ll be waiting for you,” Simon called over his shoulder as he and Anna reentered the house.

  Matthew didn’t say anything, just stood there looking at Rani. She wanted to tell him how glad she was he had returned, but she couldn’t speak those words. She searched her mind for something to break the silence between them. After a moment she cleared her throat. “How was everything in Townsend?”

  “Busy. There were lots of people everywhere.”

  This wasn’t the kind of conversation she wanted to have with him. She wanted him to tell her he’d missed her and couldn’t wait to get back. Instead, their conversation had all the excitement of two farmers discussing the weather.

  Unable to come up with a witty reply, she swallowed and followed up on his response. “There were people everywhere when Poppa took me to Townsend. Especially around the mill.”

  “I think they have more people working now than ever before. The Little River trains seemed to be coming in from all directions.”

  That information struck a warning in Rani’s mind. More trains meant more trees were being cut. The day she and her father had been there, they’d watched the mill workers unloading a train from one of the lumber camps. “I saw a train come in with logs from Elkmont while we were there. It made me sick when I thought of all those trees that had been cut.”

  “From Elkmont? I know that place. I helped lay the eighteen miles of track from there to the mill. I saw one of the bigger trains they’ve got now for the long haul back to Townsend. They’re coming in every day.”

  She sucked in her breath and gripped the porch post. “Every day? And the smaller trains are coming in all the time from the logging camps nearer to Townsend.” The thought of all those trees being cut and the fact that Matthew worked on the railroad that transported them there made her stomach roil. “How did it make you feel seeing those logs arrive and knowing you laid the tracks that got them there?”

  His eyes grew wide with surprise, and his body stiffened. He glared at her. “Not good, Rani. But then…I’ve done a lot of things I’m not proud of.”

  She knew she should be careful what she said, but she couldn’t stop. She stomped down the porch steps and came to a stop in front of him. She stared up into his angry eyes. “I know you’ve had a hard time since your mother died, but you’re a product of these hills. How could you stand by while your friends destroyed the place where you were born?”

  “Friends?” He almost spat the word at her. “There’s not one person there I’d call a friend. Maybe there aren’t here either. You’re mighty quick to condemn me for something you know nothing about. Maybe you need to get away from the protection of your parents and see what goes on in the rest of the world. Then you might understand what some people have to do to survive.”

  His words hit her like a slap in the face, and she flinched. Before she could respond, he whirled and led his horse around the corner of the house toward the barn. Rani wanted to call him back, but she hesitated.

  Tears flooded her eyes, and she groaned aloud. What had she done? For three days all she’d thought about was how she wished Matthew would hurry back. Then when he arrived, the first thing she did was attack him. She’d be lucky if he ever spoke to her again.

  Poppa had said they couldn’t know what Matthew’s life had been like, and he was right. The look on his face when he’d said he had no friends sent chill bumps down her back. And her angry words had proved she wasn’t a friend. She only hoped there was some way she could repair the damage her wagging tongue had done.

  What Poppa had said in his sermon had proven to be true. Judge not, that ye be not judged. She supposed it was her time to be on the receiving end of judgment, and she didn’t like it at all.

  She wanted to run after Matthew and beg him to forgive her thoughtless words, but her feet were rooted to the porch. Scout barked at her and ran to the corner of the house as if he wanted her to follow. She took a deep breath and ran after the dog.

  Matthew had just reached the gate of the barnyard fence when she rounded the house. Fighting back tears, she called out to him. “Matthew, wait.”

  He turned and watched as she ran toward him. She came to a stop facing him and stared up into his smoldering eyes. “What do you want, Rani?”

  “I—I want to talk to you.” She took a deep breath to control her racing heart. “I’m so sorry for the way I talked to you. I can see by the look in your eyes that I’ve hurt you, and for that I’m truly sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.”

  He pressed his lips together and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I’ve had worse said to me.”

  “But I don’t want you to hate me because I have trouble controlling my tongue sometimes. I want you to like me.”

  “I do like you, Rani. And I understand how you feel about the forest
s. I share that with you. I hope in time you’ll come to see that.” He reached for the gate and opened it. “Now I need to take care of my horse, and you need to go inside before your folks wonder where you are. We’ll talk later.”

  He turned and led his horse into the barnyard. When he entered the barn, Rani looked down at Scout, who hadn’t moved since they caught up with Matthew. She took a deep breath. “Well, boy, I think I’ve made a terrible mistake today. I just hope Matthew won’t hold it against me.”

  In her heart, though, she feared that was exactly what would happen.

  It wasn’t long after that Matthew was sitting at the kitchen table and swallowing the last bite of Granny’s cake. He pushed the plate away, picked up his coffee cup, and stared over the rim at Anna.

  “That was mighty fine jam cake, Anna. I don’t know when I’ve had as good.”

  She smiled and leaned back in her chair. “I may have baked it, but it was Granny’s recipe.”

  Granny reached over and squeezed his arm. “And I’m right glad you got back to share some of it with us. Anna’s baked a pie to take to the church tomorrow, and I reckon she’ll be up early gittin’ everything else ready to go. I hear it’s going to be a mighty big shindig.”

  Simon laughed, pushed back from the table, and stood. “That’s what I hear too. With Lavinia Davis in charge, it ought to be.”

  Anna nodded. “I don’t know if you remember her or not, Matthew. She’s married to Cecil Davis’s brother. They’ve been coming to our church for several years now, and she’s organized the whole celebration tomorrow.”

  Granny cocked an eyebrow. “And with Lavinia, I’m sure ev’rybody’s a-doin’ just what she says.”

  Simon turned to walk away from the table, but he whirled and came back. “I forgot to tell you something, Matthew. Rani and I went over to Cecil’s cabin yesterday. He’s going to get some men together to help rebuild your cabin. With John and me helping you, I figure if Cecil can get about two or three to join him, we’ll have your cabin ready in no time.”