by Abby Tyler
T-bone set down the basket and scooped the baby up. “How’s my girl?”
Maybelle grabbed his beard and gave a good yank. “Bababababa,” she said.
Christina twisted her hair up and clipped it. “I think someone should claim ‘Baba’ as their name and they can win the first-word battle.” She elbowed her mother.
“I never really saw myself as a ‘Baba,’” Ruth said.
“What are you calling yourself to Maybelle?” Christina asked.
Ruth’s gaze met his. “I don’t guess I’ve referred to myself as anything.” She tilted her head at the basket. “What’s this?”
“Some light snacks,” T-bone said.
Jason stirred, sitting up to squint at the wicker box. “Did I hear snacks?”
Christina shifted toward it. “You never miss a meal, do you, my love?”
“Not if I can help it.”
She lifted the lid and began unpacking. “Oooh, smoked gouda. Goat cheese. Brie. Grapes.” She passed a sheaf of crackers to Ruth. “This looks amazing.”
Ruth’s eyes met his. “This is a lovely collection.”
T-bone planned to say something about how he’d had nothing to do with it, but when the miniature lemon pies came out, Jason said, “I know somebody is going to pass me one of those.”
Christina laughed and handed one over. “You’re like Mom and Theodore. Always dessert first.”
“Of course,” Ruth said, and passed the little tins all around, bite-sized lemon tarts with a perfect puff of meringue.
T-bone sat next to her, holding Maybelle in his lap while he accepted the pie from Ruth.
“Can you manage both?” Ruth asked.
“I could change a tire with this wee angel on my arm,” he said. “She’s no trouble at all.”
Baby Maybelle watched with rapt attention as T-bone popped the tart into his mouth. Then her mouth quivered, and she let out a mournful cry.
“Uh oh,” Ruth said. “Better find a treat for the baby!” She rummaged around in the diaper bag until she found a teething biscuit. “How about one of these?”
Maybelle lunged forward for the cookie, clutching it in her chubby fists. She shoved it into her mouth.
“I’m not sure who needed a snack more,” Christina said, “Maybelle or Jason.”
Jason dusted off his hands. “Funny. Now pass me some cheese.”
The afternoon wore on. Luke and Savannah returned and took turns taking Maybelle into the water. The sun began its slow descent into the horizon.
Luke dropped next to him on his blanket. “You chickening out? The fireworks will start before too long.”
Branson held an annual show over the lake. It was meant for the viewers on the other side, but was just as pretty on his dock. They couldn’t hear the music being played, but usually someone pulled up their car and cranked the stereo to give the display a soundtrack.
But Luke was right. He’d better get on with his plan or else the whole day, with Ruth’s family in attendance, would go to waste.
“Send Micah down,” he said to Luke.
Luke tapped on his phone. “Done.”
Savannah wiggled her shoulders. “So exciting!” she whispered.
After a few minutes, T-bone spotted the small blue boat putt-putting around the cove. “Ruth, would you walk with me out on the dock?”
“Sure.” She accepted his hand to help her up and brushed sand from the folds of her long yellow sundress. The two of them walked barefoot to the wood planks that led to the water.
T-bone swore all his oxygen had left his body as his nerves took over. He squeezed Ruth’s hand as Micah looped a rope around the pole fixed to the end of the dock.
“All yours,” he said and left them alone at the edge of the water.
T-bone glanced back. Quite a few of Applebottom’s finest had gathered near the end of the dock, still a good distance away. He spotted Betty from the tea shop, and Delilah and Janine. All the Town Square proprietors, in fact. Maude wore a big white hat, hanging onto Gertrude, who’d dropped her sour expression for a moment, possibly expecting him to screw this up.
Back on the shore, Christina and Jason seemed clued in that something was happening. They stood at the edge of their blanket, shielding their eyes. Next to them, Luke and Savannah waited, holding hands, Maybelle squirming between them.
He took both of Ruth’s hands in his.
“Did you buy a boat?” she asked.
He shook his head, not quite sure how to begin. “The town arranged it for me.” Then he knew what to say next. “They thought it might be easier for me to get to you on a boat than driving an hour around, once we had the same address and all.”
“The same…” She drew in a breath as T-bone adjusted his pants legs so he could get down on one knee.
“Theodore?”
He withdrew the ring box from his pocket. It might not be the grand diamond she had before, but it was pretty and delicate and should suit her.
“Ruth, we’ve both had our lives, our kids, and many years before we found each other. I live on this side of the lake, and you live on yours.”
His throat caught for a moment, so he cleared it before going on.
“But this boat can cross that distance. We can spend part of our lives on your side, and part of it on mine, and it’s never more than a few minutes on the water between our two worlds.”
He opened the box, hoping her face wouldn’t fall. Her gaze dropped to the ring, and her hands moved to her cheeks and her eyes glistened. That seemed like a good sign.
“I know we don’t have to, but my fondest hope is that you will agree it’s a good thing. So if you’ll have this old codger, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
She gazed out on the group that had gathered. Luke, Savannah, Christina, and Jason had moved to the front. Christina wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
Ruth turned back to him. “Mr. Mayor Theodore Davis, I will absolutely do you that honor. I will marry you.”
A great cheer erupted from the end of the dock as she nodded her head. T-bone fumbled with the box, hoping he wouldn’t drop the ring, where it could fall through a crack into the water, but managed to get it out and on her finger before any disaster came to it.
His old knees protested standing back up, but he made it, and then she was in his arms.
“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” The chant from the crowd grew louder, and T-bone figured they might be able to hear it clear on the other side.
He pulled Ruth close to him, and in a dramatic dip that drew another cheer, he bent her backward in his arms.
“I guess you still know how to show a girl a good kiss,” she said.
“There might be a little spark left in these old bones,” he said.
He leaned in, and his lips pressed gently to hers.
And despite it being a tad early, the sun still hovering on the horizon, fireworks began popping over the lake.
She laughed against his mouth. “Did you order those?”
He lifted her to standing and shook his head. “Branson’s show shouldn’t be starting for another half hour.”
They spotted a cluster of men at the far end of the Applebottom shore. They shot another round of bottle rockets over the lake. “Go, T-bone!” they shouted. More fireworks sizzled into the air.
Christina rushed onto the dock to hug them both. Then Luke was there, angling Maybelle toward them both for a kiss. She’d get a Grandma after all, T-bone realized, and drew Ruth even closer to his side.
Gertrude and Maude passed out pies as the fireworks continued on their side all the way until the first bright bursts from Branson. The families settled on the beach to watch, faces upturned to the colors sparkling across the sky.
T-bone glanced over at Ruth and found her watching him.
“It’s the perfect night,” she said. “Beauty on both sides.”
“Most of it right here,” he said.
She leaned in, and they kissed again.
> Maybe their relationship took time to come together, given their pasts and how hard they found letting new love in.
But here it was, sparkling bright like the water beneath the fireworks, the bridge between their two worlds.
And it had only taken a grandbaby, a boat, and one belated kiss.
I’m so happy for T-bone!
Love is sweet at every age!
Love Applebottom?
Start at the beginning!
Sandy writes secret notes of love and longing in the frosting of the cakes she’s decorating in The Sweetest Match.
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Gertrude & Maude’s Cherry-Orange Pie
CRUST
• Any two-crust pastry crust
(Gertie, you still holding out on our crust recipe?)
(Yep.)
(But they’re our fans. Shouldn’t we help them make a good crust?)
(Nobody helped me with my crust.)
(Don’t you wish somebody had?)
(Don’t get maudlin, Maude. I am perfectly capable of learning how to make my own crust.)
(You taught me.)
(Only cuz your incompetence was costing me sales.)
(Gertie, I love you despite your mean streak.)
(Snap out of it!)
(Aww. You want to watch Moonstruck together this weekend?)
(All right. Don’t forget the popcorn.)
FILLING
• 4 cups of fresh or 1 bag frozen cherries
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• 1 orange, for zesting
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• 1/2 cup sugar plus some for sprinkling
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• 1/4 cup flour
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• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
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• 1 egg, beaten
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
For the crust: Lay a circle of crust on the bottom of the pie pan. Cook the bottom crust for about 3 minutes, just long enough to harden a touch. This will keep the bottom of the pie from being soggy. (Maude, remember how your pies used to be as soggy as your bottom?) (Gertie. You are one difficult lady to love.)
For the filling: Combine the sugar and flour in a large bowl.
Add the cherries and lemon juice and stir gently. (Note that this is hard to do when Gertie’s insulting you. You might want the kitchen to yourself.)
Place the filling onto the bottom crust of the pie and use a zester or a cheese grater to gently zest bits of orange peel onto the surface of the cherries. (I generally zest two sides of the orange, but you can do more if you want the tart orange flavor to come through more strongly.) (You can never be too tart, right, Maude?) (Gertie, that’s your life motto.)
Cover with your top crust. You can do any sort of decorative crust. We chose a lattice here because it’s traditional and the bright cherries are cheerful against the crust. (Which can offset the grumpy mug of someone who might be watching over your shoulder.)
Beat the egg and brush it over the top of your crust. Sprinkle with sugar.
Place the pie in the oven at 425°F and then immediately drop the temperature to 350°F.
Bake 15 minutes at 350°F then cover the edges with foil to prevent over browning.
Bake another 30 minutes.
Enjoy your pie and don’t miss more of Gertrude and Maude in the next Applebottom book!
About Abby Tyler
Abby Tyler loves puppy dogs, pie, and small towns (she grew up in one!) Her Applebottom Matchmaker Society books combine the sweet and wholesome style of romance she loves with the funny, sometimes a-little-too-truthful characters she remembers from growing up in a place where everyone knew everybody’s business.
Join her email or text list for a bonus epilogue for every book, a wedding scene narrated by Gertrude!
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The Applebottom Matchmaker Society books include:
The Sweetest Match
The Perfect Disaster
The Irresistible Spark
The Unexpected Shelter
Mistletoe Summer
The Special Delivery
Belated Kiss
with many more planned!