Dixie Belle

by Debby Mayne

  “Huh?” His timing was odd, but everything around her seemed that way lately, so she shouldn’t have been surprised.

  Uncle Forest stood and started pacing. “I think you heard me. Before coming to New York, I never missed church, and after we got here, I followed Bootsie to the church she found. I was doing church every Sunday but only with actions. Sometimes she’d rope me into something else, like a potluck or a midweek prayer meeting.”

  “What’s wrong with that?”

  He stopped by the window and pointed. “There are all kinds of hurting people out there, but I never bothered to stop and see what I could do to help them.”

  “What on earth are you talking about, Uncle Forest? I am so confused.”

  His eyes glistened as he turned back around toward her. “You’re confused? No, I’m afraid I’m the one who’s been confused. Cissy, since you’ve been here, you’ve cast a different light on everything for me. I’ve been forced to stop and think about things I’d shoved to the back of my mind.”

  “You have?”

  He nodded. “I now realize that I’m wrong about so many things that I thought I knew. For starters, all the long hours and hard work in the world won’t make my business truly successful.”

  “But your business is very successful.” Cissy thought for a moment. “It is successful, isn’t it? I mean, you’re not hiding something bad, are you?”

  “The only thing I’m hiding is myself.” He sat back down. “I’ve been hiding from the Lord.”

  Cissy sure did want to know what brought all this on, but she wasn’t about to come right out and ask—at least not now. “So what can I do?”

  “For starters, you can continue doing what you’ve been doing, except one thing.” He leveled her with one of his squinty-eyed gazes. “Talk to Tom Jenkins.”

  “But I thought—”

  He held up a hand to stop her. “I thought a lot of things, but that’s another thing I was wrong about. My problems actually started before Tom bought Sewing Notions Inc. although he didn’t do a thing to improve them.” He paused. “He and I have already discussed the whole Sunday-only Christian thing that I’m afraid we’re both guilty of. I think we’re on the same page now.”

  “I thought . . . ” Her voice trailed off as she realized she was making another assumption.

  “What did you think?”

  She shook her head. “So what do you want me to talk to Tom about?”

  Uncle Forest lifted his hands. “Whatever you were talking to him about before.”

  “Didn’t he just steal some business away from you . . . us?”

  “One of his salesmen had been working on that account. We’d barely managed to hang on to it. When they contacted their suppliers and said they were increasing their business, I thought that meant we were in. Even though I knew Jenkins had been talking to them, I didn’t think they’d actually turn everything over to Sewing Notions Inc.” His contrite expression tugged at her heart.

  “I thought you were upset about that.”

  Uncle Forest slowly shook his head. “I was upset, but it was more about my own life than anything else.”

  “Does Aunt Bootsie know about this?” Cissy fluttered her hand in the air. “I know you said you discussed some things with her, but I’m talking about all this thinking you’ve been doing.”

  He roared with laughter. “She knows I’ve been acting like a crazy man lately, going back and forth between blaming God and punishing myself. In fact, last night she told me it was time for me to get a grip.” He snorted. “Can you believe that? My wife who promised to love me for better or for worse came right out and told me to get a grip.”

  Cissy could imagine Aunt Bootsie saying just that. The woman didn’t like nonsense.

  “So I’m supposed to go out there and call Tom? Tell him never mind the fact that I was upset that he used what I said against Zippers Plus to get the business?”

  “No, that’s not what you’re supposed to say. He didn’t use anything you said against this company. Granted, you do talk too much, but this has nothing to do with you. Just give him a chance to explain.”

  “That’ll be hard,” Cissy admitted. “I was pretty rough on him.”

  “I know you were, but you can talk to him and apologize.” He motioned toward the door. “You can go on back to your desk now.”

  “Not yet. I have some questions for you now.”

  Uncle Forest’s eyebrows shot up. “Questions for me? Like what?”

  “I want to know how I’m doing here, because if you don’t want me to stay, I don’t want to make you miserable.”

  “Granted you’re probably not cut out for this business, but you’re not making me miserable.” He paused and smiled. “Uncomfortable maybe, but not miserable. As I already said, since you’ve been here, I’ve been forced to think about some things I’ve tried to blot from my mind.

  Bootsie has noticed. She even told me that having you here was like a breath of fresh air.”

  “Wow. I don’t think anyone has ever said that about me.”

  “That’s not all she said,” Uncle Forest continued. “But that’s all I’ll tell you right now.” He leaned forward. “Next question?”

  “Have you been talking to Mama?”

  “Of course I have. Your mama—my sister—and I have talked once a week ever since I moved up here. Why?”

  “Does she have anything to do with your change of heart?”

  Uncle Forest quickly glanced away. “I didn’t say that.”

  “Okay, so what’s really going on?” Cissy should have known better than to think Uncle Forest suddenly took a liking to Tom Jenkins.

  He massaged the bridge of his nose and expelled a whoosh of air. “I really didn’t want to tell you this, but your old boyfriend . . . what’s his name?”

  “Spencer?” The sound still left a bitter taste on her tongue.

  “Yeah, that’s who I’m talking about. He might be getting out of jail soon, and she’s worried he’ll go looking for you.”

  Her knees went weak, and she fell back down into the chair. “Does he have any idea where I am?”

  “He knows you’re not in Hartselle, and since he’s on probation, he can’t come up here looking for you without getting into all kinds of trouble that might land him back behind bars.” Uncle Forest paused. “We’re hoping he’ll be distracted before you even think about going back home. I’ve heard he’s developed quite a following of young ladies who like the bad-boy image, so maybe he’ll get over what happened soon.”

  Cissy blew out a sigh of relief. “We need to pray for those women. I’d hate for him to repeat what he tried to do to me.”

  “You need to let things happen as they will,” Uncle Counts said. “Pray for everyone, including Spencer, but stay out of his way. Eventually something else will take over his thoughts, and then you can go wherever you feel led.” He waved her off. “Now get back to work. I have things to do.”

  As Cissy left Uncle Forest’s office, she thought about their conversation. Uncle Forest was right. Even if she wanted to return to Hartselle, she didn’t think she’d be able to because of Spencer.

  When Tom’s phone rang, he saw that it was Forest Counts. As quick as this was, it probably meant bad news.

  “Hey, Mr. Counts.”

  “Call me Forest. We’ll be working together for a long time, and this Mr. Counts thing will get old real quick.”

  “So you’ve decided to accept my offer?”

  “That’s what I just said. I’ll have my attorney call yours to draw up the papers.”

  “That was quick.”

  “I finally listened to my wife, and she told me to do this. We went over all the paperwork, and it looks like you have an excellent business plan.”

  Tom was surprised, and he couldn’t help but grin. “Sounds good. If you have any more questions, feel free to call. I have nothing to hide.”

  “I do have one question.”

  Tom relaxed. “Shoot.
”

  “How can someone so good in business be so dense with women?”

  “Who are you talking about?”

  “You. I know this merger has everything to do with the fact that you’ve fallen in love with my niece.”

  “Not everything. I’ve been working on a plan for quite a while.”

  “Then let’s just say the timing is about her.” Forest snickered. “You’re too smart to be in this mess.”

  “Smart has nothing to do with it, I’m afraid.”

  “Let me give you some advice.” Forest paused. “You don’t mind taking advice from a geezer, do you?”

  Tom laughed. “I would hardly call you a geezer.”

  “Okay, so let me rephrase that. Here’s some advice from a wise, mature man who has messed up more times than he can count. Find a way to be with Cissy. Tell her to give you an hour to state your case. Let Cissy say everything she has to say to get it out of her system. When she’s finished, apologize and promise you’ll never hide anything from her again.”

  “But I didn’t intentionally hide anything.”

  “Maybe not, but it’s a nice touch. I’m sure she’ll understand after the fact that she hid your relationship from me.”

  “Okay, then what?”

  “Then keep your promise. Cissy might be a motor mouth, but she has a heart of gold. She would never intentionally do anything to hurt anyone, which is why she keeps getting herself into so many pickles.”

  “There is one problem,” Tom said softly.

  “Oh, yeah? Since when has a problem ever stopped you from doing what you need to do?”

  Mr. Counts had a point. “Okay, so I’ll do whatever I can to get Cissy to speak to me again. The rest is up to—”

  “The Lord,” Forest said.

  “That’s exactly what I was going to say.”

  “Then why are we still talking? You better get on the stick, Tom. My niece is a mighty pretty girl. If you wait too long, you’ll miss out on the best thing that ever happened to you.”

  Tom hung up laughing. The Lord sure did work in the most unexpected of ways. If someone had told him a week ago that Forest Counts would be conspiring with him to get in Cissy’s good graces, he would have wondered what planet they’d been living on.

  Cissy propped her elbows on the tiny table in her apartment but lowered them when it shook. Charlene nibbled the edge of the cornbread as Cissy’s phone started ringing again. “You can’t keep ignoring the man forever. Why don’t you put him and yourself out of misery and talk to the poor fella?”

  “It’s too awkward. I don’t know what to say. I accused him of using me to advance his business.”

  Charlene put down the wedge of cornbread and leaned toward Cissy. “Okay, so you and I both know how much you love to talk. I’m sure he realizes you were just voicing your frustration.”

  Cissy squinted as she thought back to the times they’d been together. “Maybe.”

  “Okay, so you don’t know where you stand with him. Why can’t you at least sit down with him and clear the air? You don’t have to marry him. Just communicate with him . . . and give him a chance to say something.”

  Charlene had a point, but Cissy’s pride made her want to run and hide. “I don’t know if I can do that without getting myself right back into a mess.”

  “I have an idea,” Charlene said in a conspiratorial tone. “Set up a lunch meeting with him so you have a starting and an ending time. If it makes you too uncomfortable, at least you’ll know you won’t be there long. But on the other hand, if you need more time, you’ll have an excuse to see him later.”

  “I s’pose I could do that.” Cissy tilted her head. “Would you go with me?”

  Charlene snorted. “Honey, that’s the last thing you’d want. If I so much as heard a single solitary negative thing about you coming from his lips, I might just haul off and deck him.”

  “We certainly wouldn’t want that, would we?” Cissy giggled.

  “No sirree.”

  “Okay, next time he calls, I’ll answer.”

  Charlene pointed to the phone as she stood. “Nope. I’m gonna go to my apartment, and as soon as I leave you’re gonna call him right back.”

  “But I—”

  “No buts. Call him now, and when you’re done, come see me.” Charlene went straight toward the door and turned around. “If you don’t do this, I might have to resort to more drastic action, like dragging you over to his office or church myself.” She planted her fists on her hips and bobbed her head. “And trust me, shoogie, that’s not something you want.”

  After Charlene left, Cissy stared at her phone for a couple of minutes before picking it up. She scanned all her messages, trying to stall, but finally, she knew what she had to do. She pulled up his number and clicked call.

  “Cissy, I am so glad you finally got back with me. Will you give me an hour to explain?”

  “An hour is a long time. What do you want?” Cissy resisted the urge to ask him to come over. That would make things way too easy for him.

  He sighed. “Okay, I suppose I don’t deserve more than a few minutes.” He cleared his throat and continued. “Look, I know why you’re upset, and I’m really sorry. I’ve had the longest talks with your uncle, and I know I’ve made some mistakes.”

  “Yes, you have.” She was a little taken aback by how quickly his apology came and the fact that he didn’t make any excuses. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

  “I know, and I am. Will you give me another chance?”

  “How do I know you won’t do it again?”

  The sound of his breath brought back that familiar tingle in her stomach. “You don’t. Only time and letting me prove myself will restore your confidence in me.”

  She’d almost forgotten how soothing the sound of his voice was and how he could make her feel from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. “I reckon we can give it a try.”

  “That’s all I ask.” An uncomfortable pause fell between them before he spoke up again. “Did your uncle tell you what we have planned?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “We’re merging our wholesale businesses, and I’m turning over all my accounts to him.”

  Good thing there was a chair behind Cissy, or she would have been on the floor. “You what?”

  He explained the plans he had with her uncle. “I probably should have let him tell you,” Tom said. “But I’m sure he’ll understand, given what’s been happening between us lately. Cissy, I didn’t want to tell you this on the phone, but I can’t get you out of my mind.”

  “Really?” In spite of her earlier anger, she smiled. “I have a confession to make. I can’t stop thinking about you either.”

  “I’ve already told you that I think I’ve fallen in—”

  She gasped. “No, don’t say any more. We can talk later . . . in person.”

  He cleared his throat. “Yes, you’re right.”

  After they hung up, she paced in front of her daybed and ranted about her uncle withholding information. “The least Uncle Forest could have done was told me he was gonna be Tom’s partner.”

  “Did I hear you correctly?” Her door opened, and in walked Charlene. “It’s been a while, and since you didn’t come over, I thought I’d check in and see if you’re okay. What’s this about your uncle and Tom being partners?”

  Cissy spent the next hour telling Charlene about her ten-minute conversation with Tom, leaving out what she thought he’d been about to say. It was hard, but she’d decided that if there was ever a time she needed a filter, this was it.

  “That is just weird,” Charlene said. “I wonder why they went and did that. It doesn’t seem like a good business decision.”

  Cissy waved her hand. “It has something to do with wanting to create a niche market for designer notions with products made in the USA.”

  “Well, that makes sense.”

  “Maybe to you it does, but Uncle Forest sure does have a lot of e
xplaining to do.”

  Chapter 28

  THE NEXT MORNING Cissy arrived at the office early—at the same time as Dave but before Uncle Forest. “I never thought I’d see the day,” Dave said. “So what got you out so early this morning?”

  “I have to talk to my uncle.” She plopped down in her chair and turned on her monitor, doing her best to avoid Dave’s intense stare.

  “Does this have anything to do with the merger?” Dave asked.

  Cissy bolted out of her chair, spun around to face him, and planted her fists on her hips. “So you knew, and you didn’t tell me?”

  “Hold on there, Cissy.” Dave made a lowering gesture with his hands. “You left in such a hurry yesterday. He called me into his office after hours.”

  “He could have at least called me.”

  “Oh, but I thought you wanted to be treated like a regular employee and not someone special just because you’re the owner’s niece.”

  “I do.”

  Dave folded his arms. “You can’t have it both ways, Cissy.”

  That shot some of the wind out of her sail. “Yeah, I reckon you’re right, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  Dave laughed. “You do realize this will involve some restructuring, right?”

  “Restructuring?”

  He nodded. “Since he’ll have more salesmen, he’ll need managers. Most of the senior salespeople don’t want to give up their commissions and flexible schedules, so he’s offered me another promotion.” He puffed up his chest. “You’re looking at your new sales and training manager.”

  Cissy smiled. “Congratulations! I know that’s what you’ve been gunning for, so I’m super happy for you.”

  “He has a surprise for you too.”

  “I can’t imagine anything that would surprise me at this point.”

  “Cissy!”

  The sound of Uncle Forest’s voice coming from the elevator caught her attention. “Oh, I didn’t hear the elevator ding.”

  “That’s because you were so busy chatting up the new sales manager. Are you gunning for a promotion for yourself?” Uncle Forest went straight to his office before turning around. “Because if you are, it’s not going to work.”