by Rachel Hanna
“But she’s across town! We thought for sure you wouldn’t know her.”
“Stella’s grandma and I played cards together years ago.”
“Of course,” Julie said, rolling her eyes. “So that’s who you were on the phone with just now?”
“Yes. I was just ordering a little cake so I could smash it in my beloved’s face.”
“We were getting cake, Dixie,” Julie groaned.
Dixie shrugged her shoulders. “You can never have too much cake, darlin’. Don’t fret.”
“Stella shouldn’t have even taken your order. She knows what we’ve got planned.”
Dixie chuckled. “I’m a pushy broad when I want to be. Don’t be mad at her. Say, you seem like your feathers are ruffled about something. What’s going on?”
Julie put her head on the table. “I think Dawson might be breaking up with me tonight.”
“What?”
“He wants to have dinner on the dock at seven to ‘talk’.”
“And?”
Julie looked up. “When has talking ever been a good thing?”
“You had me worried for a minute. Maybe he just wants to catch up after a busy week.”
“Dixie, come on. He specifically wants to talk. That can’t be good.”
“He loves you.”
“And I love him. But, things have been different this week. I think he’s planning to adopt Dylan.”
Dixie smiled broadly. “That makes my heart feel so warm. Dawson would be a wonderful father to that boy. You don’t want him to do that?”
“Of course I do. I just don’t know where I fit into that scenario.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mothered two daughters. I don’t know the first thing about boys. And what if Dawson wants to do this alone? Are we just going to date forever?”
“Wait. Do you want to marry Dawson?”
Julie allowed a smile to creep across her face. “Maybe.”
“Oh, doll, I’m so happy to hear that! You know that boy is scared as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs to ask you to marry him.”
“You think so?”
“Listen, I know him like the back of my hand, and Dawson wants to propose. I just know it. But, I think he’s scared you’ll say no.”
“I would never say no to Dawson.” Hearing the words come out of her mouth were shocking, even to her. Somewhere along the way, she’d gone from never wanting to get married again to desperately wanting to be Dawson’s wife.
Dixie grinned and clapped her hands in delight. “What if…”
“What if what?”
“What if you proposed to him?”
“Are you serious?”
“Come on! Women can do anything these days, right? He won’t be expecting that at all! And it will show him how serious you are about building a life with him, even if he adopts Dylan.”
“I wouldn’t know what to say…”
Dixie pointed at the center of her chest. “Speak from here, darlin’. That’s all it takes.”
Julie stood up. “I’m going to do it!”
Dixie stood up to join her. “This is so exciting!”
“I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
Dixie reached out and put her hands on Julie’s shoulders. “You can do this. He loves you. Just remember that.”
Julie grabbed her purse and turned toward the door. “Wish me luck!”
SuAnn looked across the square and saw Henrietta standing with a group of her friends. She was holding court, like she was some sort of royalty when in fact she was just a cheater.
As she locked up the bakery door, she thought about the best way to approach this. All day long, she had been boiling inside. The thought of how hard she and Darcy had worked on that contest only to have it taken from them by someone who thought she was better than everybody else.
Before she knew it, she felt her feet walking straight in the direction of Henrietta. There she stood, in all her glory with her too tight skirt and her big bouffant hairdo. She wanted to flick something into her hair and watch it go up in flames. Okay, maybe that was a bit too much. With the amount of hairspray she used that would most certainly cause a flammable event to happen.
“Well, hello, Hen,” SuAnn said, her arms crossed. Henrietta and all of her friends, all as equally tacky as she was, turned around. They looked at her with such disdain that it was obvious Henrietta had filled them in on who she was.
“Again, dear, it's Henrietta. What can I help you with?”
SuAnn chuckled under her breath like some sort of maniac. “Well, I was just wondering if you had filled your friends in on what you did at the pie contest?”
Henrietta cleared her throat. “I’m not sure I understand?”
“I think you do. Would you like for me to explain?”
Feeling cornered, Henrietta turned and looked at her friends. “Would you ladies mind giving us a moment alone? Being the mayor's wife is an exhausting job,” she said, waving her hand in the air.
“Oh, this has nothing to do with you being the mayor's wife…” SuAnn interjected as her friends, or maybe groupies would've been a better word, walked away. Each of them turned around several times to sneer at SuAnn, looks she returned right back to them.
Henrietta turned around quickly and stared at her, her eyes squinting. “What in the world is this about?”
“Well, your tone certainly changed quickly.”
“I don't know what you're getting at about the pie contest. I won fair and square, and it sounds like you've got a lot of sour grapes!”
“I know you cheated.”
Henrietta rolled her eyes and scoffed. “Oh good Lord, this is unbecoming. Losers should lose with dignity. Second place is still good. But don't lower yourself by making false accusations.”
SuAnn smiled. “I know that you cheated. A little birdie told me, and if you'd like I can certainly get the proof to show at the next county commission meeting.”
The color drained out of Henrietta's face. She stood there, her arms by her side, no expression whatsoever. “No one will believe you.”
“Oh, I think they will. Didn't your momma ever tell you that cheaters never prosper.”
“What do you want from me?”
“I want you to set the record straight. I won that contest, and we both know it.”
Henrietta walked over and sat down on a metal bench. She looked as dejected as anyone SuAnn had ever seen. “I don't know what got into me. I won that contest for twelve years in a row. When I found out that you were about to break my streak, something just sent me right over the edge.”
SuAnn couldn't believe her ears. Was this woman actually admitting what she’d done? That seemed very out of character for her.
“I’m new here. That contest was important for me and for my business.”
“I understand that. I truly do. You know, times are really changing around here. When my husband first took office years ago, we were a big deal. Everybody looked up to us. I went to all of the best parties, and we were always invited to everything. But now all of this new blood is winning the elections, and it's only a matter of time before we’re booted out of office.”
“What does that have to do with a pie competition?”
“It was all I had. It was my claim to fame, even though that's ridiculous. Hearing myself say it out loud makes me feel like a loser.”
“You shouldn't define yourself by these kinds of things, Hen.”
“Henrietta.”
SuAnn waved her hand. “See? Henrietta sounds pretentious. Why can't you just let me call you Hen?”
“Because a hen is an animal, not a person. It's not proper.”
“Don't you ever get tired of keeping up appearances?”
“I suppose so. Sometimes. But I'm far too old to change who I am now. Look, I'm sorry for what I did. I don't really know how to make it better. I guess I can go admit what I did, and then you can have the crown and the spa certificate…”
“I know what you mean. My son moved all the way to Atlanta in search of some fancy job. My daughter got married and moved out to some godforsaken ranch in Montana. I never see my grandchildren because they live too far away. And my husband, well let's just say he's not the most entertaining fellow I've ever met.”
SuAnn laughed. “I just got divorced because I got addicted to shopping on those TV stations and ended up spending a ton of money. And my husband was as boring a man as I've ever met. I had to do something to entertain myself.”
The two women looked at each other and started laughing. “Why, aren't we a pair?” Henrietta said.
“Yeah, I guess we are more alike than I thought we were.”
“Say, do you think we might be able to become friends?”
SuAnn thought for a moment. “I guess anything is possible. But first, you have to make things right.”
“I will,” Henrietta said. “I promise.”
Dawson stepped aboard William’s boat, the water causing him to bob up and down as other boats made their way home for the day.
“How’s business so far?”
William laughed. “Well, I’ve been in business less than a week, so I’m not a millionaire just yet. But, things are going well.”
“Good. Congratulations, man.” Dawson sat down and leaned his head back, running his fingers through his hair.
“What’s up?”
“What do you mean?”
William sat down across from him. “Dude, I’ve known you since we were kids. You’re always stressed when you lean back and run your fingers through your hair.”
Dawson sat up and looked at him. “You mean I have a tell?”
“Let’s just say you wouldn’t be good at poker.”
“I’ve got a lot on my mind, and I just had to get away from the inn for awhile. Camp ended this afternoon, and things were so quiet after those kids left.”
“Yeah? I bet you’ll enjoy that quiet,” William said with a laugh.
Dawson scrunched his face. “Is it crazy if I said I don’t enjoy it? That I miss those kids? Or, specifically, one of those kids.”
“Janine told me you’ve formed a bond with one. Dylan, I think?”
Dawson smiled. “He’s a cool kid. The situation he was in… Man, I can hardly think about it without my eyes tearing up.”
“Bad stuff, huh?”
“Yeah. But…”
“But what?”
“I’m thinking about adopting him, if they’ll let me.”
William stopped what he was doing and looked at Dawson. “Seriously?”
“Do you think that’s a crazy idea?”
“I think it’s really noble.”
“Nah, it’s not noble. It’s just that I love that kid. I don’t want to save him. I kind of feel like he’d be saving me.”
“How so?”
“I’ve wanted to be a dad for as long as I can remember. You know that.”
“What about Julie?”
“Well, see, that’s the thing. I don’t know how she’d feel about being married to me and raising a son.”
“Married? Have y’all even talked about that?”
Dawson shook his head. “Not really. At least, not in a few months. Getting her to marry me is going to be hard enough after everything Michael put her through, but asking her to start over and be the parent of an eight year old might put the last nail in the coffin.”
William leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “I think you’re wrong about Julie. I see how she looks at you, man. She’s a good woman, and there’s no way she’d leave you because you want to adopt Dylan.”
“I don’t even know if I’d qualify to adopt him. There’s so much red tape involved. But, I’d at least like to try, you know?”
“Is there a reason why you don’t just propose to Julie?”
“Are you insane? I can’t just propose without even talking about marriage beforehand. She’s not a spur of the moment kind of person. She’s more of a planner.”
“She literally moved here on the spur of the moment and started a whole new life. What makes you think a surprise proposal wouldn’t be the most romantic thing that’s ever happened to her?”
Dawson sat with the idea for a moment while William finished getting his stuff together to go home for the day. What would happen if he just went straight to the jeweler before they closed, picked the perfect ring and popped the question by the ocean in a few hours?
“What if she says no?”
William slapped him on the back. “Then you’ll have your answer. What good is it to keep dating if you want to be a married man? And, at least you’ll know where you stand, right?”
“Right.” Dawson said as he climbed out of the boat. “I just hope I’m not standing alone.”
Chapter Twelve
Julie sat in her car, her hands shaking as they gripped the steering wheel. What had she been thinking? She was going to pop the question to Dawson? Had she gone insane? Dixie could talk her into anything. Well, at least nothing had happened yet. He had no idea she was thinking such a crazy thought, and he never would. At least no harm was done.
She could see him off in the distance, casting his fishing line out into the water as he waited for her to get there. Why was she so nervous? He wanted to talk to her, and that never seemed like a good thing. In her experience, when a man - or anyone, really - said they wanted to talk, it wasn’t because they wanted to chat about how great things were going.
After finally summoning her courage, she stepped out of her car and started walking toward him. He was so handsome, standing there in his khaki shorts, baby blue t-shirt and boat shoes. Tall and strapping, as her mother would call him, he was the epitome of movie star handsome. The way he moved, so lithe and strong, made her feel safe when he was around. He was the whole package of strong and sexy and kind that every woman wanted, and she got to call him her boyfriend. What would it be like to call him her husband?
That was it. She was going to do this. She was going to propose. She was going to go for it! She marched toward him like she was on a military mission, and she wasn’t going to lose. This was her moment, and she was grabbing that brass ring. Going for that gold medal…
“Peach cobbler?” Suddenly, Lucy appeared out of nowhere in front of her. She was holding a dish wrapped in aluminum foil, a big smile on her face.
“What?”
“Peach cobbler. You love it, right? I made it for your dinner with Dawson. You take it to him?”
Julie laughed under her breath, her adrenaline still pumping like she’d been chasing a lion. “Of course. Thank you, Lucy. Good to see you.”
As Lucy made her way back into the house, Julie tried to catch her breath. All of that courage and bravery she’d just mustered had escaped and she was left with a pounding heart and boatloads of stress hormones coursing through her veins. As much as she loved Lucy, she wanted to pinch her hard right about now.
“Oh, you’re here,” Dawson said, a broad smile on his face. Why was he so good looking? It made it very hard to concentrate sometimes, especially when the setting sun was casting orange and yellow light on his stubbled jawline.
“Lucy gave me this,” she said, handing it to him. He set it on the picnic table behind him and then pulled her into a tight embrace. Okay, this was a good sign. He wouldn’t hug her like that if he was dumping her, right? Or maybe it was a long goodbye hug to last her the rest of her life?
As Dawson held her in his arms, he didn’t want to let go. What if she said no to his proposal? What if she laughed? What if she said he had to choose between her and Dylan?
Finally, he pulled back and looked down at her. She was so beautiful, especially in the streaking lights of a lowcountry sunset. “Ready to eat?”
“Sure,”
she said, seeming a little nervous. Maybe she was trying to figure out how to let him down easy, tell him if he adopted a kid she was moving on with her life.
“Lucy made brisket today, so I hope that’s okay?”
“I love her brisket. And her baked beans. That woman is a whiz in the kitchen, huh?”
Was her voice shaking? Something was different, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
“I hear y’all are planning a surprise wedding reception for Dixie and Harry this Sunday?”
She stared at him. “Please tell me Janine asked if we can have it here?”
He laughed. “She did. Lucy is all prepared to help out. Of course, I’ll do whatever y’all need me to do.”
“We’ll need the arbor pulled down to the beach. I thought it’d be a nice touch to have them renew their vows in front of the water with Reverend Lumpkin.”
“That sounds great,” Dawson said, unable to take in her words as he tried to formulate what he wanted to say. He passed the bowl of baked beans to her.
“So, you said you wanted to talk to me about something?”
Crud. He wasn’t ready yet. He needed more time to not sound like a moron when he asked her. He had to stall.
“Well, I wanted to talk to you more about Dylan.”
“Dawson, I already told you that I think you adopting him would be a great idea.”
“I know. But, I guess I’m wondering where that would leave us?”
There was a long pause. Longer than he liked or anticipated. “I love you. That’s all that matters, right?”
Not what he wanted to hear. That was a non-answer. Maybe he should just abort this mission and be okay with single dad-hood and long-term dating.
No. It was time to go for broke. Put it all out there. Lay it on the line…
“Julie, I…”
“You forgot the sweet tea!” Lucy suddenly called out from the side door. Dawson felt like he might have a heart attack.
That darn Lucy! She had the world’s worst timing. Just when Julie thought she was brave enough to say the words… to ask the question… Lucy had yelled out the door and scared them both to death.