Southern Treasures

by Coleman, Lynn A.

  Daniel relaxed his fist. “On your honor, it isn’t true?”

  “I swear. We’re just friends.”

  Daniel nodded and made his way through the front door.

  Matt sighed. Of all the times to have to deal with small-town gossip, now is not it.

  Matt walked back to Southern Treasures and examined the repair job Mo and Ellis had done. The walkway was boarded off and a small sign read UNSAFE. He went to the door of the store and found it open. On the counter, folks had placed notes of get-well wishes and prayers. Matt grinned. There are certain advantages to living in small towns, he mused.

  ❧

  Peg groaned, her mind foggy. Pain coursed through her body. She blinked. The room seemed dark, her bed stiff. Opening her eyes, she tried to focus on something in the room, but everything seemed out of place.

  She closed her heavy lids again and tried to think. She fought to reopen her eyes again. Her lids were unresponsive. A dark room means nighttime, she reasoned. I’ll just go back to sleep.

  “Miss Martin, how are you feeling?”

  Peg grasped the edges of her bed. Who was in her room? Fear gave her eyelids the strength she needed. She shot them open. The room appeared brighter. Everything was not as it should be. “Where am I?”

  “Relax, Miss Martin, you’re at Doc Hansen’s house.”

  Peg groaned. Memories of the accident, the pain, all flooded back. It all made sense now. She tried to bring into focus the darkened silhouette of the woman now sitting beside her. Peg smiled as Mary Hansen leaned closer to the light. The doctor’s wife often worked side by side with her husband. She was his nurse, secretary, and anything else that needed doing in the office. “Mrs. Hansen.”

  “Yes, Dear. You’ve given us quite a scare. How are you?”

  “Hot and sore. What happened to me?” Peg tried to roll onto her right side to face Mary. Pain surged anew up her right leg to her lungs. A cry of pain eased past her lips.

  “Stay still, Peg. You don’t want to undo my husband’s fine work.” Gray wisps of Mary’s hair fell out of her bonnet.

  Peg glanced under the sheet toward her right leg. It seemed to be braced with something.

  “You fell through the dock.”

  “Yes, I can remember that. But what damage did I do?”

  “A board pierced your right thigh. There was damage to your leg muscles. You’ve been in and out for a couple of days due to a high fever brought on by infection, although my husband did give you something for the pain, which aided your sleep.”

  “A couple days?” Peg whispered. “What about my store? Christmas is only a few weeks away.”

  “I believe Mr. Bower has been taking care of your store. Your brother has been checking in as often as possible. In fact, half the island’s been in here. Greg finally put a message on the slate informing them of your condition.” Mary smiled. “My husband, as fine a doctor as he is, doesn’t like answering the same question over and over again.”

  Peg relaxed against the bed. Matt Bower is working in my store? Why? “Two days?”

  “Yes, Dear. Let me check your fever?”

  “What time is it?” Peg asked when Mary took the thermometer from her mouth.

  “Close to midnight. I’m not certain.” Mary lifted the sheet over Peg’s right leg.

  Peg looked down and saw the swelling and discoloration. “Will it heal?”

  “We hope so. You’re fighting the infection well.”

  “Will—will, I have to lose my leg if the infection doesn’t heal?”

  “Oh, Peg, don’t go frettin’ about things before it’s time. One thing is certain with medicine, no one knows too much before it happens. Some folks have lost their limbs from less of an injury, others have lost use of them, and still others recover quite well, and you’d never know they had been hurt. Just do as you’re told, and I’m certain the good Lord will take care of the rest.”

  Was that supposed to encourage me? Peg wondered. I could lose my leg, I could be lame, or I might possibly walk again. Oh, joy. She bit down her sarcastic thoughts.

  Mary glanced at her face. “I’m sorry, Peg. I should have kept my mouth shut. Relax. You’re healing well. Can you see this?” Mary pointed to the outer side of Peg’s right leg.

  Peg lifted herself up on her elbows. “A little.”

  “Well, yesterday that area was bright pink. Today it’s half the shade, much paler. A very good sign.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. I forget some folks don’t want, or even need, to know all the possible problems they could be facing.”

  “No, don’t apologize. I think I prefer knowing.” Peg collapsed back on the bed. It was too difficult to hold herself up on her elbows. “I feel dizzy.”

  “You lost a lot of blood. But you’re young, healthy.”

  “I’m not that young.”

  Mary grinned. “When you reach my age, you’ll remember just how young thirty-eight is.”

  Peg chuckled. Her ribs hurt. “My sides hurt when I laugh.”

  “You cracked a rib. Not much the doctor can do but bind it. It shouldn’t give you too much trouble.”

  Peg lay there wondering how many other injuries she sustained from her fall.

  “Grace Perez has been coming by checking on you. She even sat for a spell, giving Greg and me some time to rest.”

  Peg nodded. Their private conversation had barely begun when she fell through the dock.

  Mary continued to change the bandages.

  “Rumor has it that you and Mr. Bower are planning on getting married after his son arrives.” Mary sat back down into her rocking chair.

  Peg rolled her eyes and groaned. This time it wasn’t from the pain.

  “Another island legend, I see.” Mary winked.

  “Yes,” Peg whispered.

  “Normally, I’m not one to give ear to such conversation, but with the way he’s been checking in on you and filling in at your store…I just thought it might be true.” Mary picked up a small needlepoint.

  “Matt probably feels somehow responsible for the accident since he bought the place. He isn’t. It wasn’t his fault. I knew better. I shouldn’t have been out there.”

  “Why did you go out there?”

  “Grace and I had some private matters to discuss. I didn’t want anyone walking in on our conversation.”

  “Makes sense. I had no idea that wharf was in such bad repair.”

  “Most of it is solid. There are just a few spots. I forgot to watch where I was going.” Her mind had been on helping Grace by sharing her own story.

  “I’m forever forgetting to watch. I’ve sprained my ankle more times than I can remember. Did you know that’s how I met Greg?”

  “No.” Peg smiled. Mary was great at stirring a conversation. “Do tell.”

  Mary put down her needlework, placed a cool cloth on Peg’s forehead, and rocked back. “I’d been walking around the pond at the university, and I wasn’t watching where I was going. Apparently, a gopher had burrowed a tunnel across the pathway. I stepped in, fell down, and proceeded to hobble to the school’s treatment center. Greg was the student doctor on call.”

  Peg listened to the older woman ramble on about her husband’s exquisite hands and something about his eyes. Peg’s own eyes were falling quickly. Soon Mary’s words seemed to disappear.

  When she opened her eyes, Matt Bower towered over her bed. “Ready for me to take you home?”

  Thirteen

  Peg’s complexion had returned to normal. Matt couldn’t help but be pleased with her progress. Dr. Hansen had filled him in that morning, letting him know that she’d awoken during the night and that they seemed to be winning the battle over the infection.

  “Huh?” Peg blinked her vivid blue eyes.

  “I’m here to take you home. Dr. Hansen said you could sleep at home just as easily, perhaps even better, in your own bed.” Matt pulled the rocker up beside her bed.

  “Where’s Daniel?”

 
“He’ll be here shortly. Grace Perez has volunteered to care for you. I’ll come by in the evening and report to you the days events at Southern Treasures.”

  Her gaze darted back and forth. “That isn’t necessary, Matt,” she whispered.

  Yes, it is. “Isn’t a problem. I’m happy to help. Your niece, the militant guard—”

  “Mariella?”

  “Yes, that’s the one…will also be sleeping in your apartment.”

  “Daniel can take me home,” she insisted.

  “He and I just reasoned, and Daniel saw the wisdom in my helping to take you home. If you’re uncomfortable with my presence, I understand, and I’m certain we could find another volunteer.”

  Peg lie motionless before him.

  “It’s no bother to lend a hand, and my work does not require a nine-to-five work day.”

  “True.”

  “Your sister-in-law, Carmen, has the younger children she needs to be fresh for. Grace Perez has no children to watch over. And she seems quite skilled in caring for another in discomfort. I want to help you Peg.”

  “But what about the rumors?” Peg pulled the covers up to her chin.

  “Ahh, well, they already have us married and having children. How much worse can they get? You fell through my dock, Peg. It’s the least I could do to help.”

  Peg mumbled something he couldn’t quite make out.

  “What?” he asked.

  “Nothing. Tell me why you’ve been working at the store?”

  “Well, you’ve been a tad laid up, wouldn’t you say?”

  “A simple note on the door would have told folks where I was—not that anyone doesn’t know.” Peg grinned.

  “True, you made the front page of the paper.” Matt enjoyed their playful banter. It felt good. It felt healthy. Too many images of Esther being laid up and the pain she suffered had visited his dreams since Peg’s accident.

  “Tell me it isn’t true.”

  “Afraid it is. You were and still are the big news this week.”

  “Great,” she moaned and closed her eyes.

  “Peg, it can’t be any worse than the questions I’m being asked all day. For example, ‘when are you and Miss Martin getting married?’ Or even bolder yet, ‘I didn’t know you and Peg were already married. How come you didn’t invite me to the wedding?’ ”

  Peg’s body started to shake with laughter. She grasped her ribs.

  “Sorry, didn’t mean to make you laugh.” Matt held back his own merriment.

  “How is the store?”

  “Busy. Everyone and their brother has been in to buy just one more item for Christmas. The special orders have been the hardest to track down. Vivian Matlin has been quite helpful on that score. Seems the woman has been in your store a fair amount.”

  “She has. If it weren’t for Vivian, I’m not sure the store would have ever gotten off the ground.”

  Matt eased back the rocker and crossed his legs at the ankles. “I’ve kept track of all items sold, and the bank has graciously accepted each day’s income to deposit in your account even though I’m not you. I guess the rumors have come in handy also. Or perhaps it’s because it’s a small secluded place where everyone knows everybody, and they know I’m not trying to set myself up to rob your account. On the other hand, the amount of cash I deposited in the same bank upon my arrival should give me some liberties.”

  “You’ve been on this island for such a short time, and you’ve gotten yourself quite respected. I’m impressed.”

  “Don’t be. It’s just the money talking.”

  Peg knitted her eyebrows. “No, I don’t think so. I think it’s the man. Folks are seeing you as someone they can trust. Someone they can bank on.”

  Matt took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Once she knows the truth of why I’ve come, she won’t be thinking that way.

  “Hi.” Daniel beamed as he walked into the room.

  Grateful for the distraction, Matt relinquished the rocker and stepped away from Peg’s bed.

  “Doc says you can come home. Matt borrowed a wagon, and Grace is setting up your apartment. I didn’t know you and Grace were such good friends.”

  “I imagine she feels guilty since she was with me at the time of the accident. But she can use the distraction of helping to take care of me. Not to mention the income. We are paying her, aren’t we?”

  “If you can get her to take some income, you’re a better man than I,” Daniel teased. Matt crossed his arms and watched the loving relationship between brother and sister.

  Peg grinned. “I’ll work on it. So when do I leave?”

  “As soon as you’re ready to go,” Matt responded. “But Doc said he wanted to examine you once more before you leave. I’ll be back. Someone asked to pick up an order this morning from your store.” Matt waved. “Just have the doctor send someone to fetch me when you’re ready.”

  “Thank you, Matt.” Daniel extended his hand.

  “Nothing anyone else wouldn’t have done. I understand there’s been quite a list of volunteers.”

  Daniel chuckled. “I believe it’s given old Doc Hansen the motivation to release her early.”

  Matt grinned. “You’re assumption is probably correct.” He left Daniel on the steps of the doctor’s house and headed toward the harbor. His grin slipped as the words from Peg echoed in his mind. Folks are seeing you as someone they can trust. But he knew the truth: He wasn’t worthy of her trust. But could he reveal his secret? Would it be fair? To her? To Micah? To himself?

  ❧

  Peg slid between the covers of her freshly made bed, enjoying the familiarity of the soft feather mattress. Someone had placed poinsettia plants around her room. Their brilliant reds cheered the place.

  “Grace, sit down, please. I’m exhausted just watching you.”

  Grace silently sat beside her on the small oak chair.

  Peg felt more like herself every day. Matt’s thoughtful attention and ability to make her relax in her own home had been a tremendous help. She also found Grace had been blaming herself for Peg’s accident. Over the past few days, Peg had revealed little about her own past, but she thought she had helped Grace understand her own future. Ironically, last night Juan had returned and decided marriage was the answer for him and Grace. Grace, on the other hand, was so nervous she fussed with everything in the house.

  “Grace, tell me what you’re thinking.”

  “I don’t know, Miss Peg. I want to believe Juan. I know my parents would be much happier when we married. I don’t know if I can trust him. Does that make sense?”

  “Yes, he ran out on you once. So you’re afraid he could do it again.”

  “Sí.”

  “Did he explain why he ran?” Peg fluffed up her pillow.

  “Something about being afraid.”

  Peg rolled to her left side. The wounded right leg could easily rest on the lower left one. “Give him a chance, Grace. I’m not saying you should marry him, but if he’s serious, he’ll wait. He might be able to help you with your own fears. Weren’t you afraid when you found out?”

  “Terribly.”

  “But a woman can’t run away from it like a man.” Peg smiled. “If she runs, the baby comes right along with her.”

  “Sí.” Grace giggled.

  “You and Juan are young. You’ve made some bad choices. That doesn’t mean they can’t be corrected. We serve a God of forgiveness. He takes our mistakes and fixes them.”

  “I not so sure about Juan and whether he believes in Jesus.”

  “Hmm, you might want to ask him.” Juan’s lack of faith would definitely be another hardship on this couple, Lord. Give her wisdom, Peg silently prayed.

  Grace fidgeted with a cloth she’d been using as a dust rag.

  “What is it?” Peg asked.

  “Why are you being so kind to me, knowing…knowing…” Grace looked down at her feet.

  “Because people sin, and I’m no exception. What’s the good Lord say about taking tha
t log out of our own eye before we try and take a splinter out of someone else’s? We’ve all made bad choices in our lives, Grace. Thankfully, God’s mercy covers them all.”

  A smile rose on Grace’s pink lips. Her dark black hair and dark eyes glimmered with relief. Was it necessary to tell her the rest? That Peg too had been in the same situation at nearly the same age. No, Grace seems to have gotten the message without the confession.

  “Shall we try and see if I can stand with those crutches?”

  “You know the doctor said not for another day.”

  Peg flopped back down into her pillows. “I feel so helpless.”

  Grace giggled. “You are.”

  “I should be working.”

  “How?”

  “I could at least do some embroidery. Surely that isn’t going to reopen the wound.”

  Grace rolled her eyes heavenward. “It’s a good thing Mr. Bower is selling everything in your store.”

  “What? What do you mean?” Peg rose quickly and her sides ached. Cracked ribs, she silently reminded herself.

  Grace tossed her head from side to side. “Did you hear the word ‘selling,’ as in, people are buying?”

  “Oh.”

  “You like to control, don’t you?” Grace grinned.

  “Possibly. I am the older sibling, you know.”

  Grace wandered off toward the sitting room. Peg hoped she would bring her needlepoint. Sitting did cause some pressure on her thigh, but she figured if she angled herself just right she might be able to do a couple stitches.

  If she were honest with herself, her inability to just lie around was due more to the fact that she missed Matt. She liked Grace, but she felt a constant need to be a mentor for the young woman. Grace was young, while Matt was only a few years older than herself. They even found a few safe things from Savannah to talk about. Peg found herself more and more comfortable with him. She felt a sense of harmony in the house when they were together. And for the first time in more years than she cared to think about, she was considering the possibility of courting. Courting, at my age. Ridiculous, she thought.

  “Here, Peg. I think you should stay down, though, give that leg some more time to heal,” Grace suggested, handing her the needlepoint Peg hadn’t touched in nearly a week.