by S. A. Glenn
“Thank you, Ms. Jones. And please… call me Becky.”
“Okay, Becky. And please… call me Sara.”
“Thank you, Sara. And thanks to you both for taking care of my Samuel. I haven’t seen him for—oh, my! I guess it’s been five years now. I don’t even know if I could recognize him. What time does he get home from work?”
“Around 5:15,” responded Katherine. “He comes in through the back so he doesn’t disturb the customers, then he washes up and eats dinner with me in the kitchen. I was thinking, after he cleans up, I could send him out here to help one of the customers—which in this case, will be you—and that’s how you two will reunite. Whaddaya think?”
Sara nodded with a smile of compliance.
“What a sensational plan!” uttered Becky. “It’ll be a grand surprise. I can’t wait to see the happiness in his eyes.”
“Well, I’ll let you enjoy your soup and Katherine’s company. It was nice meeting you, Becky.”
“And you, Sara. Thank you for your kindness.”
Katherine sat opposite of her soon-to-be mother-in-law, leaned in toward her, spoke in a quiet voice. “So, is the marshal in Topsail Island still adamant about Samuel and what had happened to his stepfather?”
“I’m afraid so.” She scooped up a spoonful of soup and blew on it.
“It’s such a shame that Samuel had to go through all of that hardship!” Katherine forced out.
“I know,” Becky agreed, placing the spoon into her mouth. “Mmmm! The soup is very tasty!” She grasped the napkin and dabbed the corners of her mouth. “But think of it this way: if all this hadn’t happened, you two would have never met. Right?”
“That’s very true,” Katherine confessed, breaking a smile.
“And he’s happy! Happier than I’ve ever known him to be since his father died… rest his soul. ‘Katherine’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me, ‘Samuel tells me in his letters, Katherine.”
“Samuel’s told me the same thing, so it must be true.”
“It must be…”
They gave out a careful chuckle, silence then overcame them as Becky relished her light meal.
“So, have you two thought about having children, if you don’t mind me asking?” Becky inquired, breaking the quietness.
“No, not at all. Yes we have. We would love to have a little one running around, one day. Soon, I hope,” Katherine exposed.
“Good! I would enjoy having a grandchild to spoil,” she laughed.
“We’ll do our best,” promised Katherine.
“Have you thought of any names?”
“I have! But I don’t know what they are.”
“Whaddaya mean by that?”
“Well, if it’s a girl I would name her with your middle name.”
“Nicole?” asked Becky with a surprise.
“Yes… Nicole… that’s a pretty name,” Katherine realized.
“Thank you… but what if it’s a boy?”
“You’re welcome. But if it’s a boy I want Samuel’s father’s name.”
“Larry Leon?” Becky replied.
“Yes, Larry Leon. I like that. It has a nice ring to it.”
“I would be honored if you use Samuel’s father’s or my name, as do I believe Samuel would be…”
“Then it’s settled!” Katherine nodded her head in one brisk motion. “If Samuel agrees to it, then we’ll have a name for our child.”
Becky finished her soup, pushed the bowl away and sighed as though she were sad it was empty.
“Would you like more?” Katherine sensed her appetite.
“It was quite delicious, but no thank you.” Becky covered her yawn. “I’m so tired. It was a rough ride out here, didn’t get much sleep.”
“Would you like to lie down? You may use Samuel’s bed if you wish.”
“Yes. That sounds very relaxing. Thank you, Katherine.”
“You’re welcome, ma’am. Allow me to carry your bag and lead the way for you.”
“You’re most kind.” Becky slid out from her seat and followed Katherine through the kitchen and up the stairs.
Setting Becky’s belongings onto Samuel’s table, Katherine drew the curtains shut. “If you want, ma’am, I’ll wake you up in an hour before Samuel’s due to arrive, to give you time to prepare yourself.”
“That sounds wonderful. Thank you.”
About five hours later Katherine knocked on Samuel’s door. Becky awakened, feeling reposed, giving out a stretch. She sat up, draping her legs over the bed.
“Are you up, ma’am?” Katherine put her ear to the door.
“Yes, I’m up, Katherine.”
“Good. Just letting you know that Samuel will be home shortly.”
“Thank you, dear. I’ll be down after I put on a new face.” Becky stepped over to her things and pulled out her makeup. Standing at the looking glass, she applied powder to her face, then ran a lightly-colored red lipstick over her dried-out lips. Fussing with her hair for a twinkling, she then straightened out her dress and headed downstairs.
Katherine had reserved the booth in front of the window for Becky to sit at once again. The two of them waited there, watching for Samuel to walk up the street. They had decided that after Samuel entered the restaurant and cleaned up, that Katherine would send him out to his mother’s table to take her order.
Katherine caught sight of Samuel hiking down the road toward them: What a treat she had for the one she loved. “Oh, my! Here he comes! Here he comes!” She jumped to her feet.
Becky whipped her head around. “That’s really him! My Samuel!” she clarified, looking over at Katherine with a single tear forming. “He’s so clean-cut I wouldnt’ve recognized him if it weren’t for his familiar dark blue eyes.” Becky fixated her eyes back on her unforgotten son. “Look at him! He’s so handsome… and tall,” she added with a snappy laugh, removing the tear from her eye and peering back at Katherine with a grin. “I’m nervous!”
“Just relax, ma’am, I’ll go meet with him ’n’ send him out here. Give him a few minutes. Okay?”
“Okay!” Becky let out a deep, tense breath, then she breathed slow gentle ones, poising herself. She sat alone, fiddling with the lacing on her dress as she sat properly with her hands in her lap, waiting for her son. Keeping her face toward the window to hide, she gave notice to the reflections, seeing what was going on behind her.
A dozen minutes later, Samuel walked through the swinging door, unknowingly making his way toward his long-remembered mother. He stood at her table, put on a smile, then gazed down at the lone woman peering out of the window, wearing a beautiful blue dress with fancy, black lace. “Excuse me, ma’am,” he said in a polite manner. “Can I get you something to drink?”
She had watched his image in the glass draw nearer. Taking one last deep breath, she removed her flighty face and replaced it with a valorous smile, turning toward him. “How ’bout a hug?” she asked.
“Ma?” His jaw dropped as he blinked twice.
“Samuel!” She smiled uncontrollably, then edged herself out of her seat. She stood in front of him, looking up at him instead of down at him to meet his eyes. “My, how my Li’le Carver’s grown.”
“Ma! It is you!” He wrapped his arms around her, hugging the stuffing out of her. He pulled away from her with tears on his pleased face. “How’d you find me?” But before she could answer, his look turned worrisome. Grasping her arm, he sat her down. Taking a seat across from her he peeked out the window.
“Samuel, it’s alright,” she assured him, resting her hand upon his unsettled face. “I took a private stagecoach to Raleigh, then the train from there. I used a phony name with anyone I spoke with so I couldn’t be tracked here.”
Katherine showed up with a pitcher of wa
ter and glasses. “I come out here to see how things are going with you and I catch you hugging one of our lovely customers,” she playfully told him with ornery stare, setting down the items.
“This’s my ma, Kat! My ma!”
“I know!” Katherine motioned for him to scoot over, then sat next to him.
He expressed bewilderment and silence.
She and Becky chuckled at his reaction.
“Katherine wrote to me, inviting me to the wedding. She gave me directions… that’s how I found you.” His mother patted his hand.
“How did you know how to get a hold of my ma, Kat?”
She exhaled a deep breath. “Well, while you were working, I went into your room and found her address among the papers in your drawer. I wrote it down.” She seemed to ache to tell the rest of her sneaky adventure. “Then I heard footsteps coming up the stairs, so I had to hide under your spiderwebbed bed. Yuck! You almost caught me if it weren’t for my praying.”
“That was—I thought I heard something under the—that was you, Kat?” he asked with a grin, wagging his head.
“Me and a little spider.”
“That’s why my pen was out of place, isn’t it, Kat?”
“Guilty,” she admitted with a pitiful, little voice.
“Ahhh shucks, it’s okay, Kat. I still love you. I’m glad you did what you did. Thank you,” he told her, gently tilting up her chin and bringing her lips to his.
The three of them reveled in a specially prepared feast Sara and Katherine had put together, consisting of fresh cuts of sirloin, baked potatoes with fresh butter and chives, broccoli smothered with a yellow cheese sauce, and apple pie with scoops of vanilla ice cream.
Samuel and his mother chatted endlessly about how each other was doing. She told him all was well, except that she missed him. He let her know how happy he was with Katherine and how amazing she was. The exchanging of words continued long after the place closed. As the grandfather clock struck midnight, they three, plus Sara, decided to call it a night, believing that Samuel and his mother had caught up on their lost time together.
CHAPTER 26
Bright and early on the day of the wedding, Samuel brought in the first day of spring with a prayer. “Please, God,” he prayed, kneeling at his bed. “Let me and Katherine be happy and always be together. And don’t let me say or do something foolish in front of everyone at the wedding. I guess that’s all, Lord. Oh, and amen.” He headed for Katherine’s door and knocked. “Kat, are you awake?”
“Yes, Sam, but don’t come in! It’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding,” she explained as her mother and Becky fit her into her gown.
“Oh! Sorry, Kat.” He stepped away from the door, not even wanting bad vibes to ruin the day.
He walked down the stairs and grabbed a handful of nuts and a glass of water. As he guzzled down the water, a knock at the back door erupted. He set down the empty glass then answered the door. It was his best man, J.R., wearing a fine-tailored suit.
“Holy smokes!” uttered J.R., getting an eyeful of Samuel in his fine-tailored black suit. “Never thought I’d be seeing you wearing such clothing.”
“Yeah? Well I never thought you owned such clothing,” he replied, popping the nuts into his mouth.
They shook hands, gave each other kind smiles, and headed over to the church for the wedding that was two hours away.
Katherine was fully dressed in her mother-of-pearl, moiré-silk wedding dress, a wide brim bridal hat, and white faux leather dress boots with three inch heels. She held a dozen pool blue-ivory roses, gleaming with excitement. She was wearing the dress that her mother had been married in, and it fit Katherine like a glove. Her raven hair was braided. She had a white velvet ribbon tied off in a bow at the back of her head.
The bride was taxied over to the church. Before she exited the rig, Sara scouted the building and found Samuel at the front entrance with J.R. and Reverend Papanikolaou. Sara escorted Katherine through the back door into the supply room, keeping Samuel from seeing her daughter.
As the church became packed with its array of spectators, Samuel made his way over to the reverend at his podium. Samuel’s stomach filled with butterflies, making him nervous before all the townsfolk who had come to know him as a well-respected neighbor. He spotted his mother sitting in the front row, reading his emotions through his tense eyes. She gave him a comforting smile to let him know that everything would be fine. He smiled back, took a deep breath, and exhaled his negative feeling.
The organ started playing, bringing Katherine through the front door. As she glided down the aisle, all eyes were on her beauty. She returned everyone’s stare with a nervous smile. She took her place in front of the reverend, standing face-to-face with her soon-to-be husband.
“Dearly beloved, we are all gathered here today to bring these two fine people together in holy matrimony,” spoke Reverend Papanikolaou.
Katherine’s soft eyes sparkled as Samuel gazed into them. All his life he had yearned for such a beautiful, honest, understanding, and tenderhearted woman that he could share his time and dreams with. He could now look forward to growing old with her and taking care of her with unconditional love.
After Samuel and Katherine recited their promises of devotion to each other, the reverend gave them a prayer of honor for their union. “May the Lord keep you two close, protecting you from danger, showing His grace and everlasting love for you. May He keep you two patient with one another, allowing you to grow and be deliverers of His truth. Please, accept one another as each is, loving each other till death do you part. Place the ring upon Katherine’s finger.”
Samuel dug laboriously into his jacket pocket for the bigger and more elegant ring that he had gotten her—but it was not there. Starting to panic as he glanced out at the awaiting crowd, sweat appeared on his forehead, nervous that he had lost the thing. Reaching deep into his other pocket, he pulled out the band and placed it onto her finger with relief.
“Mr. Simms, you may kiss Mrs. Simms to seal the ceremony,” pronounced reverend Papanikolaou with a grin upon his wrinkled face.
“Oooohhh!” mouthed a few of Katherine’s students—they got smacked by their parents.
Many of the people began talking about Samuel’s last name, wondering if they had heard it correctly. Becky explained to one of the inquirers about why they had not heard that name before. That person passed on the information.
Katherine pulled her lips away from her husband’s lips. She took him by the hand and led him to their family and friends for handshakes, hugs, and kisses. The back door swung open. With a grin from ear-to-ear she hauled Samuel outside for cake and honors.
At the bridal table with its stacks of presents of pots and pans, dishes, silverware, and lots of money, Samuel stood with Katherine, lost in a moment of bliss. He couldn’t believe all of this was happening. He was sure that there wasn’t a woman who could make him this happy. But now that he stood with this gorgeous woman, he knew anything was possible.
Katherine and Samuel held up champagne-filled glasses, clanked them together and toasted to the beginning of their united lives. Samuel took a sip of the bubbly substance, enjoying the tickle on his tongue. He peered out to all the guests, getting a warm feeling inside from their caring smiles. He knew that he had made the right decision by marrying Katherine. His friends and mother made that clear with their approving eyes.
The towering four-tiered wedding cake was covered with vanilla almond buttercream and pale coral vanilla fondant, filled with Manjari chocolate ganache and toffee bits, then decorated with hand-cut butterflies and lace patterns. Samuel and Katherine took hold of the knife, sliced into the bottom tier and pulled out a sliver of cake. They fed each other. Samuel’s eyes rolled back into his head. The icing was so creamy; its texture was like silk as the scrumptious flavor melted in his mouth.
/> The cake served one hundred and twenty.
Louis Pierre had graciously supplied the entertainment; a piano quintet consisting of two violins, one viola, one clarinet, and a piano. The married couple had their first dance. Katherine was a natural, but Samuel was mostly feet. As they attempted to glide through a set of movements, Samuel drew in the essence of the Mozart song composed especially for wedding receptions. The rhythm of the classical melody held him captive, kept him in ultimate felicity as he spun Katherine around. The mood was filled with appetite and fortune. The newlyweds were loaded with positive energy as they engaged in delight. All the citizens of Wrangler surrounded them. Some were talking; others were eating and drinking. The children were playing a game where one player chased others and tried to touch one of them. As the second song began, many couples joined in, giving Samuel and Katherine well-wishing smiles.
There was a tapping at Samuel’s back. “May I have the honor to dance with the lovely bride?” asked J.R.
“Of course, my good friend.” Samuel relinquished his wife to the trustworthy man.
Hand in hand with Katherine, J.R. led her through a series of delicate movements, gliding around under the deep-blue sky. “You are quite ravishing, Katherine,” he declared, dipping her.
“Why thank you, J.R. And you are quite the talented dancer,” she confessed, peering up at him.
“My cousin taught me a few moves,” he explained, bringing her up.
“So, J.R., what does that stand for: Jacob Reynolds?”
“Actually, it stands for Jacob Ryan… Ryan’s my middle name.”
“Should I address you as J.R.R.?” she asked, chuckling.
“That would be accurate, but not necessary… J.R.’s fine,” he smiled. Silence came between them as they concentrated on dancing. Then J.R. formed a serious look upon his face. “You know, Katherine. Samuel loves you like no other. He’s my best friend. Will you do me a favor?”
“What is it?”
“Please, never hurt him. It would crush him. I don’t think he would ever recuperate. Will you promise me that?”